17 January 2017 – Bahrain’s Ministry of Information Affairs (MIA) yesterday issued an order to suspend the only independent newspaper in the country, Alwasat, from using electronic media tools, effectively suspending its online presence. The order comes a day day after the execution of three torture victims and on the day the trial of journalist[…]
15
Jan
Jan
15 January 2017 – Bahrain today executed three torture victims following authorization by King Hamad. Sami Mushaima (42), Ali Al-Singace (21) and Abbas Al-Samea (27) were executed this morning by firing squad, the first people executed in Bahrain since July 2010, and the first Bahrainis executed since March 1996. The execution came less than a[…]
14
Jan
Jan
14 January 2017 – The Government of Bahrain today has taken concerning action regarding the three torture victims on death row – Sami Mushaima, Abbas al-Samea, and Ali Abdulshaheed al-Singace. Reports indicate that Bahraini authorities have called a surprise mandatory visit for the families to meet with the three detainees. According to some reports from[…]
13
Jan
Jan
Last month, King Salman approved Saudi Arabia’s 2017 national budget, the first passed since the unveiling of the kingdom’s economic reform plan, Vision 2030. In keeping with Vision 2030’s objectives, the budget increases government spending amidst economic indicators of a decrease in the country’s deficit. However, Saudi Arabia is far from out of the woods. Experts[…]
13
Jan
Jan
**Update: A Bahraini court of appeals upheld the two-year sentence against Abdulla Jaffar on 23 January 2017, exhausting his appeals process. ____________ 13 January 2016 – The Government of Bahrain has taken 19-year-old Virginia-born Bahraini-American citizen Abdulla Jaffar into custody. This arrest is meant to begin an arbitrary prison sentence passed against Jaffar almost two[…]
