Civilians Killed in Saudi-led Air Strike, 3 Children Dead

CNN reported that the Saudi-led coalition bombed the residence of Judge Yahya Rubaid on 25 January 2016. The Saudi-led coalition airstrike killed seven individuals in total, including Judge Rubaid, his wife, his son, his daughter-in-law, and three of his grandchildren. Previously, Judge Rubaid had prosecuted Yemeni President Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi for treason. According to[…]

UAE Continues to Disappear Opposition Figures

NGOs have voiced renewed concern about the UAE’s treatment political opposition and other activists, including the enforced disappearance of political exiles like Abdulrahman bin Subaih. Bin Subaih fled to Indonesia after Emirati security forces began to arrest the signatories of a petition calling for an independent judiciary and elections in the UAE. He was seeking[…]

“Witness Bahrain” screening documents life in Bahrain after the Arab Spring

Film-maker Jen Marlowe’s newest documentary “Witness Bahrain” is screening publically for the first time on Sunday February 6. “Witness Bahrain” is an award-winning documentary that provides viewers a look into Bahrain during, and shortly after, the Arab Spring. While Marlowe was in Bahrain making the film, she uncovered stories of doctors arrested and tortured by Bahraini[…]

Human Rights Watch: allegations of torture expose Bahrain’s sham reforms

Today Human Rights Watch (HRW) released its World Report, an annual review of human rights around the globe. In it, HRW alleges that “credible and consistent allegations of torture and mistreatment of detainees in Bahrain during 2015 undermined claims of reform.” It describes a “range of torture methods, including electric shock, prolonged suspension in painful[…]

A Week of Censorship for Kuwait

Earlier this month, Kuwait’s parliament passed two new laws increasing the government’s power to censor online media and restrict free expression. On 11 January 2016, lawmakers prescribed a jail term of up to ten years for any online “criticism of the government, religious figureheads or foreign leaders.” The next day, the parliament passed an additional law regulating[…]