Swiss Journalists detained in the GCC

On Thursday 9 November, two journalists working for a Swiss news outlet were detained and forcibly disappeared in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Serge Enderlin and Jon Bjorgvinsson were in Abu Dhabi to cover the opening of the Louvre Abu Dhabi and interview the museum’s architect, Jean Nouvel. The pair claims that they were accredited[…]

Omani Journalist Released From Prison

On 23 October 2017, Omani authorities released the Deputy Editor of the recently closed Azamn newspaper, Yousef Al-Haj, from prison after he spent over a year behind bars due to comments made in Azamn. As reported by the Gulf Center for Human Rights (GCHR), al-Haj was originally arrested in August 2016, along with two colleagues,[…]

GCC Cases Raised in the HRC 34 Special Procedures Joint Communications Report

Bahrain:   Complaint         Mandate(s)                                  Communication Summary and Findings________________ 04 Jul 2016 Bahrain JUA BHR 3/2016 ·   arbitrary detention ·   freedom of opinion and expression ·   freedom of peaceful assembly and of association ·   health ·   human rights     defenders ·   torture Information received concerning Mr. Nabeel Rajab who has been repeatedly arrested and has[…]

UAE-Oman porous border contributor to human trafficking

Recently, several Indian migrant workers were rescued after having spent months in Buraimi, a small border town in Oman. The women were promised jobs as beauticians in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), but upon arrival in Dubai, they were taken to a house and kept by their traffickers for weeks before they were transported across[…]

Omani courts issue verdicts violating free speech

In August, Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) covered the initial arrest of three Azamn newspaper journalists and the paper’s suspension in Oman. The crimes were related to a report Azamn published on 26 July 2016 that criticized Oman’s judicial system. Two days after the report’s release, Omani authorities arrested the founder[…]