Bahrain violates international law by making citizens stateless

In January 2016, Bahraini authorities issued an administrative decision revoking Sheikh Mohammed Khojasta’s citizenship. On February 21, authorities deported him from the country. They charged him with committing illegal acts, including “defaming the image of the state, inciting against the state, and defaming brotherly countries.” Responding to his deportation, al-Wefaq, Bahrain’s largest political opposition group,[…]

Bahrain and Russia favor “people’s right to decide their own fate”

In a high-level meeting between Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Bahrain’s King Hamad al-Khalifa, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that in regards to the conflicts in the Middle East, both countries “assert the people’s right to decide their own destiny.” During the meeting, both heads of state discussed the ongoing situation in Syria, and[…]

Further Harassment of Human Rights and Political Activists

Today, 31 December 2015, Bahraini authorities summoned five prominent activists for interrogation over speeches they delivered at an event for solidarity with detained opposition leader Sheikh Ali Salman. Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB), the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR), and the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD) condemn the[…]

UN Body Declares Sheikh Ali Salman Arbitrarily Detained

5 November 2015 – Geneva, Switzerland – The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) has officially declared Sheikh Ali Salman, the prominent leader of Bahrain’s opposition party al-Wefaq, to be arbitrarily detained by the Bahraini government. The decision, which cites both free expression and due process concerns, requests that the Bahraini government release[…]

REEMA SHALLAN: In Bahrain, the Prisons are for the Reformers

The people of Bahrain are currently facing an unprecedented attack on their human rights. Since 14 February 2011, the government has detained thousands of non-violent demonstrators for their involvement in pro-democracy protests. Unfortunately, these arrests are just the first in a series of state-sanctioned human rights violations that pervade the Bahraini criminal justice system. After[…]