GCC Cases Raised in the HRC 38 Special Procedures Joint Communications Report

To view this statement in PDF, click here.  Bahrain BHR 2/2018 14 Feb 2018 UA Mandates: arbitrary detention, executions, independence of judges and lawyers, torture Alleged victims: 1 Information received concerning the re-sentencing to death of Mr. Maher Abbas Yousef al-Khabbaz, a 28-year-old, following a collective trial that did not meet fair and due process guarantees,[…]

US State Department’s 2017 Religious Freedom Report Highlights Systematic Discrimination in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain

31 May 2018 – Two days ago, the United States (US) Department of State (DoS) published its annual International Religious Freedom Report. In it, the State Department highlights systematic, government-sanctioned religious discrimination in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, including specific targeting of the countries’ Shia Muslim communities. Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB)[…]

Saudi Arabia arrests 10 for their work promoting women’s rights

Update: Saudi officials released Aisha al-Mana and Dr. Hessa al-Sheikh on 23 May and 24 May respectively. The rest of the activists remain in detention. Many of them have reportedly been able to contact their families, although officials have not allowed Loujain al-Hathloul to contact either her family or her lawyer. 24 May 2018 –[…]

CERD Releases its Concluding Observations on Racial Discrimination in Saudi Arabia

15 May 2018 – On Friday 11 May, the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) released its concluding observations for its review of Saudi Arabia. In its observations, the Committee voices a number of concerns about Saudi Arabia’s treatment of its racial minorities and offers recommendations to bring the kingdom’s practices in line[…]

USCIRF Highlights Continued Systematic Religious Freedom Violations in Saudi Arabia

30 April 2018 – On Friday 27 April, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released its 2018 annual report, “documenting religious freedom violations and progress in 28 countries during the 2017 calendar year and making recommendations to the United States (US) government.” In the report, USCIRF notes that throughout 2017, “religious freedom[…]