GCC states claim “witchcraft” and “sorcery” is all around

The Royal Oman Police arrested two African nationals this week and charged them with crimes of practicing “sorcery.” Officers raided the house of the accused after they offered to heal an Omani citizen. Omani officials referred the two defendants to the Public Prosecution. The arrest of foreign nationals for sorcery in Oman is not an[…]

US-Saudi relationship status: “It’s complicated”

“It’s complicated” responded President Obama after being pressed about the status of his friendship with Saudi Arabia, the repressive monarchy doing more harm than good in the Middle East. Today, Obama is set to meet with his counterpart in this complicated relationship at the GCC summit where Saudi leaders and other GCC heads of state[…]

NGOs Send Letter to President Obama calling for discussion of human rights at GCC Summit

18 April 2016 Mr. Barack Obama President of the United States The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, DC 20500 Mr. President, This month during your visit to Riyadh, you will undoubtedly reaffirm the “longstanding friendship” between the US and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states. Although your administration has made the security of[…]

Human Rights Go Missing During Secretary Kerry’s Visit to Bahrain

On 7 April, US Secretary of State John Kerry met with the Foreign Ministers from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) while on his three-day trip to Bahrain. During his meeting with the GCC Foreign Ministers, they discussed regional security concerns mainly in Syria, Iran, Yemen, and Daésh.  An equally important issue in the region, human[…]

US Secretary of State John Kerry’s First Visit to Bahrain

United States Secretary of State John Kerry will travel to Manama this week to meet with Bahraini officials and participate in a ministerial meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). With US government sources indicating that “regional security [will likely] dominate” the talks, Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) urges Secretary Kerry[…]