David Beckham ‘blocked first openly gay Qatari on Instagram’ – Metro.co.uk
The first openly gay Qatari with a global profile says he has been blocked by David Beckham’s Instagram account after he tried to highlight LGBTQ+ issues in the gulf state.
Dr Nas Mohamed had tagged the global figurehead’s verified profile in a series of critical posts drawing attention to the community’s plight in the run-up to the World Cup.
The campaigner had also written an open letter to the sporting figurehead, who is promoting Qatar ahead of the 2022 FIFA games, accusing him of ‘stamping out hope’.
After tagging Beckham’s account in posts, including one saying ‘love is not a crime and being an LGBT person is not a crime’, he said he discovered on Sunday that he could no longer view the profile.
Dr Nas, who is seeking asylum in the US, told Metro.co.uk: ‘I was quite shocked just to get a reaction because I’ve been ignored completely by FIFA, FIFA officials, World Cup officials and my own government.
‘I am getting international reaction from human rights and LGBT organisations, and even Norway’s football federation met me and had a positive statement on their website about the work I am doing for the LGBT community in Qatar.
‘It’s not only shocking, it’s frightening that they are so engaged with the deal they are doing that they don’t want to hear the message.
‘A few months into this I was exhausted and frankly this is the fuel I need for my fire, I will continue to speak up. The gay community in Qatar has been sending me messages saying how they feel upset and defeated.
‘That’s exactly what I said in my letter to Beckham, he’s crushing hope with the deal he has made, and then follows it by blocking the only publicly known LGBT person from the country.’
Dr Nas, 35, went public at the end of May, which resulted in death threats and abusive comments on social media, as well as many supportive messages from Qataris, albeit in private.
He previously spoke to Metro.co.uk for our Pride celebrations about how he is increasing the visibility of LGBTQ+ Qataris ahead of the World Cup, which kicks off at the 60,000-capacity Al-Bayt stadium on November 21.
The physician’s decision to step out of the shadows has come at great personal cost. He accepts he will never return to the land of his birth and is estranged from his family.
Even in the US, where the dissenting voice runs Osra Medical practice in San Francisco, he has said that ‘the threat of death is not zero’ after the news was ill-received by some in the conservative emirate.
Beckham, on the other hand, has become the most recognisable face of Qatar’s promotional activities ahead of the World Cup.
In September, he lavished praise on the oil-rich Gulf state in a promotional video. The former England skipper, 47, who has 75.5 million followers on Instagram, described the country as ‘incredible’ in the film shot at tourist destinations in the emirate.
He has previously drawn criticism from human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell, who said it was a ‘big shock’ that the football icon had taken on the ambassadorial role in a reported £150 million deal.
‘He has sold out and it’s awful to watch,’ Dr Nas said.
‘A lot of people do that in the Gulf region, they take the oil money, the blood money, and walk away and turn a blind eye to a lot of really awful human rights violations. That’s what he’s doing very clearly, he’s not even wanting to engage in a conversation about it.
‘The World Cup is just one big display of the kind of deals that have been happening in the Gulf region.
‘I really think we must, all of us, start holding entities accountable when they make deals with that region.’
Early signals by the hosts suggested fans would be able to raise rainbow flags and express LGBTQ+ identities, at least inside the eight stadiums.
But the overtures were followed by a crackdown on children’s toys with colour schemes similar to the Pride symbol and comments by a senior Qatari official that security staff could intervene to stop expressions of support in order to protect spectators’ safety.
It has been reported that the offence of same-sex relations could result in the death penalty under Sharia law, from which Qatar’s legislation is derived, although there are no recorded examples of this happening.
‘Almost all my conversations with LGBT people in Qatar start with fear,’ Dr Nas said. ‘They are living in fear. I am hearing about the different ways they get physically and mentally abused.
‘There is not just psychological abuse for being an LGBT person, there is systematic oppression of the LGBT community at all steps and there is a frightening conversion therapy programme there that is state-sponsored.
‘There is a section of the law enforcement that actively hunts and imprisons LGBT Qataris, that is what is going on in Qatar right now.’
When news emerged of the reported deal in August 2021, Beckham was said to have had reassurances that fans would be allowed to display rainbow flags in stadiums and to have been told about the growing number of women in politics.
A representative told The Times: ‘David has been visiting Qatar regularly for over a decade and went on to play for PSG [Paris Saint-Germain], so he has seen the passion for football in the country and the long-term commitment that’s been made to hosting the World Cup and delivering a lasting legacy for the region.
‘He’s always talked about the power of football as a force for good…As we reach the one-year-to-go point, he will join the wider football community that is coming together for the World Cup 2022.’
An anonymous source was reported as saying: ‘David believes in Qatar’s commitment to progress and that the World Cup — the first to be held in the Arab world — can effect significant positive change.
‘He strongly believes in the power of football to bridge differences but, crucially, has seen the progress on issues that matter.’
The Qatari World Cup media team said the matter was one for Beckham to comment on. Metro.co.uk has approached his representatives.
Do you have a story you would like to share? Contact josh.layton@metro.co.uk
For more stories like this, check our news page.