Updated: Sayed Adnan Majed Hashem was a 22-year-old worker at the Al-Manhal water factory when he was arrested in October 2018, for the fourth time, from a house in AlDair. During his detention, Sayed Adnan endured physical and psychological torture, forced disappearance, medical neglect, and denial of contact with his family and attorney. He was[…]
10
May
May
The pardon of more than 1500 prisoners on April 8th by Bahraini king Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa has taken activists by surprise. While officials portray the amnesty as a benevolent gesture aimed at fostering reconciliation and healing societal divisions, it can be more accurately viewed as a calculated manoeuvre to mitigate rising domestic tensions,[…]
09
May
May
Ali Mahmood Mahmood (AlKahraba’ii) was a 15-year-old Bahraini school student and minor when Bahraini authorities arrested him from his grandfather’s house on 16 January 2019 without presenting an arrest warrant. During detention, he endured torture, enforced disappearance, denial of access to legal counsel, unfair trial based on confessions extracted under torture, and sectarian-based insults. Ali[…]
08
May
May
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has invested deeply into portraying itself as a progressive, tolerant and human rights-compliant state. This strategy, however, as in other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, clashes with a reality in which activists and dissidents are detained and tried for exercising their rights to freedom of expression and association. The recent[…]
07
May
May
Last week, the EU announced a relaxation of Schengen visa rules for the citizens of Saudi Arabia. No human rights compromises were made in exchange. Since democracy constitutes the best umbrella under which human rights can thrive, the next question follows: What is the current state of democracy in Saudi Arabia? In its new report[…]
