Where Is Doaa El-Houni? A Libyan Accused of ‘Spreading Atheism’

Column. Doaa El-Houni fled Libya in 2021 after threats to her life. This summer, the country she escaped got her back. Nobody outside its security services seems to know where she is.

The Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain (CEMB) raised the alarm this week. Its appeal cites documents and statements from Libyan security bodies. According to those, she was wanted for “spreading atheism”.

What we know about Doaa El-Houni

According to CEMB, she was arrested in Türkiye. Turkish and Libyan authorities then coordinated her return. A Libyan document says she was due at Tripoli’s Mitiga airport on 14 August 2026. The group says Libya’s Internal Security Agency now holds her. Her location has not been disclosed.

FTD has not been able to confirm these details independently. No Libyan or Turkish official has publicly explained the case. That silence is part of the problem.

Why her case matters

Libya’s record is grim. UN monitors have documented arbitrary detention, enforced disappearance and torture, including by the Internal Security Agency. CEMB also points to a video from July that appears to show a woman being publicly flogged in Sabha.

Then there is Türkiye’s role. International law bans sending anyone back to a country where they face a real risk of torture. This principle is called non-refoulement. Article 3 of the UN Convention Against Torture states it plainly.

If the account is accurate, a woman fled for her life and was handed back for the “crime” of disbelief. That should trouble anyone who believes in freedom of conscience.

CEMB asks Libya to reveal where she is and prove she is alive. It wants her to see a lawyer and doctors, and to be freed. It also urges the UN mission in Libya to intervene.

Ex-Muslims know this pattern well. Leaving a faith is private. Punishing it is political. We saw the same logic in Iran’s treatment of freethinkers.

The minimum is simple: a name, a place, a lawyer. Libya owes Doaa El-Houni all three.

Read CEMB’s full appeal.

This is an opinion column. Fact basis: Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain statement (dated 20 Sept, published 23 Sept 2026), citing Libyan security documents; UN Convention Against Torture, Article 3. Details of the arrest and detention come from CEMB and have not been independently confirmed by FTD.