Newsletter #145

Bahrain   UN Special Procedures release Joint Communications Report for HRC31 The Special Procedures of the United Nations Human Rights Council released the 13th iteration of their joint communications report on Thursday, February 25, 2016, documenting allegations of human rights abuses from around the world. In the most recent edition of the report, the Special[…]

UAE’s New Ministry of Happiness: A Distraction from Repression?

On 8 February 2016, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced that it would be forming new ministries of “happiness” and “tolerance.” While the UAE is not the first country to establish such positions—commentators note that the move is reminiscent of Bhutan’s Gross National Happiness Index, installed in 1972, as well as other more recent trends—it remains[…]

Egyptian Detainee Details Torture in the UAE

Mosaab Abd al-Aziz, the son of a former advisor to Egypt’s deposed president Muhammad Morsi, has sent a taped message to his family alleging that UAE authorities tortured him in order to coerce him into confessing membership in the Muslim Brotherhood. UAE police arrested Abd al-Aziz in October 2014 and they have held him in[…]

UN Experts Condemn Detention and Trial of Foreign Nationals in the UAE

A panel of UN experts has called for the release of several Libyan nationals currently on trial in the UAE, including Mohamed al-Darat, Kamal al-Darat, and Salim al-Aradi. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary detention has confirmed that the men are being held arbitrarily, and the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture has cited credible evidence[…]

One Week Until Trial of Salim al-Aradi and the al-Darats in the UAE

Next Monday, on 15 February, Salim al-Aradi is due to appear before an Emirati court along with three other Libyan nationals, including the Libyan-Americans Kamal and Mohammed al-Darat. After months of delay, the Emirati government finally disclosed the prosecution file on al-Aradi and the other defendants, which accuses them of providing support to the Libyan[…]