Persistent UAE´s efforts to maintain critics behind bars: a new mass trial

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has invested deeply into portraying itself as a progressive, tolerant and human rights-compliant state. This strategy, however, as in other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, clashes with a reality in which activists and dissidents are detained and tried for exercising their rights to freedom of expression and association. The recent[…]

Oil Production in the GCC: Urgent Evaluation of Human Rights Concerns in the Region

Seventy-six million metric tons of oil reserves are located in the Arab Gulf, constituting around 66% of the global reserves. Oil represents a prominent source of income in the Middle East, proven by the increased production during the last decades. From 1980, oil production passed from 11 million barrels per day to 18 million. The[…]

Scrutinizing the State of “Freedom of the Press’’ Across GCC States

Historically, Gulf Cooperation Countries have used a strategy of repression by imposing state control of the media or through broad laws and strict censorship. Often, the governments justify this control by referring to social values like cohesiveness and harmony in society. However, this strategy poses journalists in the Gulf at extreme risk. They are harassed,[…]

Ahmed Mansoor: A Symbol of Struggle for Human Rights in the UAE Ahead of COP28

Ahmed Mansoor, a prominent human rights defender in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has faced relentless persecution due to his unwavering advocacy for human rights. His case stands as a distressing emblem of the struggles faced by activists in the UAE, shedding light on the challenges of championing fundamental rights in the region. Mansoor’s arrest[…]

UAE: Open letter to the Emirati authorities to free human rights defender Ahmed Mansoor on his 50th Birthday

16 October 2019 – Today, Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) alongside 141 NGOs and civil society organizations sent an open letter to Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al Nahyan, the President of the United Arab Emirates, on the occasion of human rights defender Ahmed Mansoor’s 50th birthday, calling upon him to immediately[…]