Bahrain Moves Forward with Measures to Centralize Internet Censorship

8 August 2016 – The Government of Bahrain introduced further restrictions on the right to freedom of expression on the Internet last week, centralizing website-blocking powers under Bahrain’s Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA). On 5 August 2016, the head of the TRA Board of Directors, Mohammed Ahmed Al-Amer, issued Decision 12/2016 regarding regulations on safety over[…]

NGOs to Sec. Kerry: Send US Ambassador to Nabeel Rajab’s trial

1 August 2016 The Honorable John F. Kerry Secretary of State U.S. Department of State 2201 C Street NW Washington, DC 20520 Dear Secretary Kerry, We write to raise our serious concerns with the Government of Bahrain’s continued repression against peaceful dissent, including the renewed prosecution of Nabeel Rajab, president of the Bahrain Center for[…]

#BahrainSpeaks: Voices from the Ground, part 1

Since the 2011 Bahraini uprisings, there has been a severe crackdown from the government on the civil liberties of the country’s citizens. Years of mass incarceration, torturing political prisoners, and repressing the freedoms of speech and assembly have finally culminated in some of the largest protests seen since 2011. The June 2016 arrest and detention[…]

Nabeel Rajab: a Lifelong Human Rights Defender

On 13 June 2016, Bahraini authorities arrested Nabeel Rajab on grounds that he spread “false news and rumors about the internal situation in a bid to discredit Bahrain.” This arrest is the government’s latest attempt to stifle Rajab’s human rights activism. Despite its multiple attempts to jail Rajab and extinguish his activism, the Government of[…]

Legal Dispatch: HRD Nabeel Rajab Illegally Detained, Must Be Released

On 13 June 2016, the Government of Bahrain arrested prominent human rights defender Nabeel Rajab from his home. The Government did not initially justify the arrest, but later stated that he had committed crimes against the Bahraini State in making statements over Twitter. Mr. Rajab has been incarcerated initially in East Riffa Police Station and[…]