Bahrain: Journalist, Activists Convicted in Unfair Mass Trial

30 October 2017 – A Bahraini court today convicted 19 individuals on terror charges after an unfair mass trial, with penalties ranging from ten years to life in prison. Fifteen of the defendants were stripped of their citizenship. Among those convicted were former Al-Wasat journalist Mahmood al-Jazeeri; Husain Abdulwahab Husain, son of imprisoned opposition leader[…]

Amid GCC Row, Governments across the Gulf Fail to Address Statelessness

With the diplomatic crisis embroiling the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states, Saudi– and United Arab Emirates (UAE)-backed institutions have accused the Qatari government of arbitrarily revoking the citizenship of 55 members of the Al Morah (al-Murrah) tribe, including its leader, Sheikh Talib bin Mohammed bin Lahoum bin Shraim. Though it is as yet unclear if[…]

ADHRB at HRC36 Event Summary – Bahrain: Systematic State Abuse in the Name of Countering Terrorism

On 13 September 2017, Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) and Amnesty International hosted an event at the 36th session of the Human Rights Council that sought to explore the means by which Bahrain’s state security agencies—particularly the National Security Agency—systematically violate human rights in the name of countering terrorism. The panel[…]

Bahrain: US State Department Documents Decline in Terrorism Last Year, Continued Rights Concerns

On 19 July 2017, the United States (US) Department of State’s Bureau of Counterterrorism and Countering Violent Extremism (CT) released its Country Reports on Terrorism for 2016. Although the country report on Bahrain fails to assess the full impact of the kingdom’s increasing abuse of counterterror measures to target nonviolent activism and dissent, Americans for Democracy &[…]

US organizations send letter to Bahrain king ahead of Sheikh Qassim trial

Last month, a group of US-based organizations that work on religious freedom signed a letter to Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, King of Bahrain, to raise concern about the case of Bahrain’s most prominent Shia cleric Ayatollah Sheikh Isa Ahmed Qassim. Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB), Center for Inquiry, Shia Rights Watch,[…]