Bahrain Restores Law Enforcement Powers to NSA, Reversing BICI Recommendation

5 January 2017 – Bahrain today restored law enforcement abilities to its National Security Agency (NSA), an institution which oversaw torture of protesters in 2011. The move reverses one of the few post-Arab Spring reforms outlined in the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI). The reversal comes after an escalated human rights crisis in 2016,[…]

Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr and the Struggle for Social Justice

On 2 January 2016, Saudi Arabia executed Sheikh Nimr Baqir al-Nimr, a prominent Shia cleric and outspoken peaceful social justice activist. Sheikh al-Nimr was an influential cleric in the Eastern Province town of Awamiyah, where he advocated for political freedom, human rights, and an end to oppression for all Saudis. He rose to prominence in[…]

Saudi’s Gulf Policies Inform Bahrain’s Techniques of Repression

As the largest country economically and the most populous state in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Saudi Arabia’s policies significantly affect the policies of its neighbors. Since the 2011 Arab Spring popular protests around the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Saudi Arabia has used its influence to lead the counterrevolutionary charge, and worked assiduously[…]