Official News

Rep. McGovern Calls for Unconditional Release of Rajab: Following the arrest of Nabeel Rajab on Thursday, Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA) called for "the immediate and unconditional release of Nabeel Rajab" who "has been arrested for exercising his fundamental right to freedom of expression." He also commented that Rajab has not had access to a lawyer since his detention hours earlier.

Members of Congress Send Letter Seeking Release of Jailed Bahraini-American: Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Christopher Murphy (D-CT), along with Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), called on Secretary John Kerry to “take all possible steps to secure” the release of Tagi al-Maidan, an American citizen of Bahraini descent, who is a constituent of DeLauro's district and was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2012. The letter urges Kerry to capitalize on the possibility of al-Maidan’s parole eligibility and the possibility that U.S. Ambassador William Roebuck may request a pardon by the King.

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Updates from Bahrain

Nabeel Rajab Arrested for Tweet: Following an op-ed describing the conditions in Jaw Prison, which he likened to the “jaws of hell,” and tweets documenting prison abuse, security forces surrounded the home of activist Nabeel Rajab on Thursday and arrested him. Rajab was reportedly taken to the General Directorate of Anti-Corruption Economic & Electronic Security where he was interrogated last October for another tweet. Rajab filmed [Ar] the arrest, noting that this is the second time he has faced arrest for a tweet. Lawyer Jalila al-Sayed "confirmed Rajab's arrest but said she is not aware of what charges, if any, he will face." Meanwhile, the government tweeted that Rajab was arrested “after publishing information that would harm the civil peace and insulting a statutory body in violation of the law.” Following the arrest, Brian Dooley stated, “The regime has made clear that muted criticism from the U.S. and elsewhere doesn't stop it from targeting its human rights leaders. Washington should impose consequences for these violations.”

Government Files Lawsuit to Dissolve Political Society: Last week, al-Wahdawi political society criticized [Ar] the government’s involvement in Operation Decisive Storm as “flagrant aggression” that violates international law. On the same day, the Ministry of Interior issued a statement warning that criticism of the government’s military action would be considered “sedition” and said “it would take appropriate steps against individuals that put the safety and security of the country at risk.” The Ministry of Interior then announced the arrest of two individuals for “exploiting the situation in Yemen” via Twitter, which Nicholas McGeehan said included the Secretary General of the al-Wahdawi political society Fadhel Abbas. Shortly thereafter, numerous rights organizations called for his release while the Justice Ministry released a statement saying it would be filing a lawsuit seeking to dissolve al-Wahdawi, arguing that it violated “provisions of the Constitution” and “undermin[ed] national security.”

Salman Trial Continues; Prison Letter Released: Following last week’s postponement of the trial of al-Wefaq leader Sheikh Ali Salman, his defense panel held a press conference saying “the court refused the panel’s request to show videos containing recordings of the speeches of which the charges against Salman were based on.” Jalila al-Sayed, a member of Salman’s defense team, added, “The defense panel believes that preventing the witness from being questioned is an attempt to hide the truth...which goes short of Sheikh Ali Salman’s fundamental right to defense.” Further, al-Wefaq Deputy Secretary-General Hussain Aldaihi argued that Salman’s leadership of peaceful protests represents the aspirations of the majority of the country, concluding, “The opposition will always call for peace and will always call on the authority to abandon its ruthless vindictive policy against its own people.”

Meanwhile, Salman released a letter from prison calling upon his supporters to continue their peaceful movement, saying, “We are demanding a civil democratic state that protects rights and duties that cannot be expropriated by reason of religion, ethnicity, color or family. A state that respects every citizen’s religion and sect, and protects his/her right to practice religious rituals and worship in absolute freedom. Such states that saw practical success in democracy, whether a republic or monarchy, and provided stability, are what we are seeking for our country and people.” He concluded, “My great and free people, walk in the path of your legitimate demands while sticking to the peaceful movement and God shall be victorious to you. You will certainly achieve a free and dignified life in a system which all factions in the country agree on.”

Analysis & Commentary

Analysts Discuss Effect of U.S. Inaction: Jeff Bachman argued, “The Bahraini government has intentionally transformed what was a popular uprising, one that involved upwards of one-quarter of Bahrain's population when it began four years ago, into a sectarian struggle. It has largely succeeded, and in doing so, has facilitated the radicalization of members of its police and security forces, some of who have joined ISIS, and called on others to do the same.” He asks what effect U.S. inaction will have on the country and concluded, “The Obama administration is supporting an anti-democratic monarchy in Bahrain that institutionally discriminates against its Shi'a population, hires Sunni police officers from hotbeds of ISIS support and awards them citizenship in order to decrease the level of Shi'a majority, and tolerates support for ISIS among members of its population, including its police and security forces. I can't help but think that I've heard this one before.”

Meanwhile, Brian Dooley responded to the Senate letter lobbying for the release of U.S. arms sales to its ISIS coalition partner, arguing, “While Bahrain is fomenting sectarianism and crushing peaceful dissent, lifting the arms restrictions would be exactly the wrong move. Bahrain’s security forces are drawn almost exclusively from its Sunni minority, and selling them more weapons will be read as a vindication for those who refuse to reform or diversify the forces.”

Further, Erica Qualliotine asserts, “The United States should be a leader in the fight to eradicate statelessness and press our allies to remove gender discrimination from nationality laws. In the midst of other global security threats, statelessness might seem like a low priority. But the invisibility of the problem can disguise its severity. Statelessness breeds more terror and trauma that in turn contribute to instability. Eradicating statelessness should be at the forefront of U.S. foreign policy” especially in U.S. ally Bahrain, in which the state is systematically “stripping political dissidents of their citizenship.” Finally, Emanuel Stoakes questioned "whatever happened to Bahrain's torture reforms?" and highlighted the case of Hussain Jawad, EBOHR Chairman who remains imprisoned after he was detained on the uprisings anniversary in February this year, as a prime example of the ongoing crackdown on dissent. Stoakes concludes, "no big push [for reforms] is likely...though the United States has urged Bahrain to implement promised reforms, unrest in the Gulf all but ensures that security, and not human rights, will continue to dominate the relationship."

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International & Bahraini Rights Organizations

Daughter Speaks Out for Activist Father on Day 20 of Hunger Strike: Khalil al-Halwachi, who was detained and arrested in September 2014 after police forces allegedly entered his residence and found a weapon, has been on hunger strike since February 26, 2015 in protest of the poor conditions and systematic abuse of prisoners in Dry Dock Prison. According to his daughter, Fatima al-Halwachi, Head of Monitoring and Documentation at the European-Bahraini Organization for Human Rights, the goal of his hunger strike includes ending torture and “use of solitary confinement as a tool of revenge against prisoners of conscience” and “allow detainees to communicate with their families,” among of things. Further, she says, “We don’t know what will happen to my father, there are thousands of political prisoners in Bahrain many are serving years in prison because of their views."  For more on Mr. al-Halwachi’s case, click here.

Rights Groups Raise Concerns Over Incommunicado Imprisonment of Jaw Prisoners: Reportedly, numerous prisoners at Jaw Prison have not been heard from since riots broke out 20 days ago. Human Rights Watch reported, “Families that have received no word from their imprisoned relatives are understandably becoming very anxious...The Bahraini authorities need to allow all Jaw Prison inmates to contact their families at once to let them know they are safe.” Further, al-Wefaq’s Liberties and Human Rights Department held a press conference [Ar] in which Hadi Almusawi detailed family reports of the riots on March 10 and highlighted, “We have not seen the Authority open a joint investigation in any of the issues that shocked the society.” Finally, Bahrain SALAM for Human Rights issued an appeal to the international community to intervene in the situation at Jaw Prison after it “corroborated testimonies from other prisoners who describe the exact details of the situation in Jaw Prison, and it is likely the situation is more grave than described especially with prisoners terrified to fully elaborate to their family members of the situation because of punishments dished out after family visits.”

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