Bahrain Begins First Military Trial of Civilians since 2011, Victims of Incommunicado Detention Unfairly Prosecuted

24 October 2017 – Four defendants facing political charges yesterday appeared before the military court, in the first trial of civilians by the Bahraini military since 2011. Defendant Sayed Alawi Sayed Husain was subjected to enforced disappearance at the time of his arrest in October 2016 and and held incommunicado since; none of the defendants[…]

Bahrain Temporarily Releases Ebtisam al-Saegh, Mohamed al-Shakhoori, and Radhi al-Qatari

23 October 2017 – On Sunday October 22, 2017, the Bahraini government released Ebtisam al-Saegh, Radhi al-Qatari and Mohamed al-Shakhoori from detention. All three detainees have faced ill-treatment and torture during their time in arbitrary detention relating to their human rights work.  While Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) welcomes the initial[…]

Profiles in Persecution: Ebrahim Jawad Sarhan

Ebrahim Jawad Sarhan is a Bahraini attorney. On 23 May 2017 he was contacted by the Lebanese broadcaster Al Mayadeen for an interview on the violent dispersal of sit-in protesters gathered around the home of Sheikh Isa Qassim. Sarhan limited his comments to legal aspects of the issue, noting that five people had been killed[…]

Profiles in Persecution: Husain Ali al-Sahlawi

On 14 March 2010, Bahraini security forces shot Husain Ali al-Sahlawi as he was leaving his grandmother’s house. Several shotgun blasts of birdshot were fired at him and he was wounded by pellets in over 70 locations. Witnesses to the attack took him to the home of Ebrahim al-Demestani, who was at the time the[…]

Bahrain: Sheikh Nasser Appointed to Top Security Post despite Evidence of Torture

4 October 2017 – On 28 September 2017, Bahrain’s king appointed his son, Sheikh Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa, to serve as a member of the Supreme Defense Council (SDC) despite credible allegations he directly tortured detainees in 2011. Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) strongly condemns Sheikh Nasser’s promotion to one[…]