Dr Mohamed Al Roken (UAE) and Dr Saud Al Hashimi (KSA) - the 2012 Alkarama Award co-laureates - were awarded for their contribution to the promotion and protection of human rights in the Gulf region in a ceremony held on Friday 7 December 2012 in Geneva. The laureates, who are currently detained for having called for greater civil and political rights, were represented by their lawyers and relatives.

Farida Ouaghlissi, a 49-year-old human rights Algerian activist and a wife of one of the victims of disappearance, was arrested on 3 December at Algiers airport where she was waiting to a take a flight to Geneva in order to participate in the 2012 Alkarama Award ceremony.

Alkarama was able to express its concerns on the current human rights situation in the United Arab Emirates earlier today, during the pre-session briefing organized by UPR-Info.

In the night of 27 April 2012, Ahmed Abdallah Al Khamsa, aged 38, was arrested on his way home from presenting his condolences for the death of Mr Lotfi Ben Qaïd, an acquaintance. The arresting forces had initially gone to Mr Al Khamsa's home at 11.30 pm, but had not found him there.

The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, alerted to the case of Mohamed Hajib by Alkarama, declared his detention to be arbitrary, as his "conviction was based on a confession obtained under torture", and calls upon the Moroccan Government to "release him immediately and award him appropriate compensation".

Mohamed Hajib (aged 31), of German and Moroccan nationality, is currently detained in Tiflet prison, having been arrested on 17 February 2010 at Casablanca airport on his way back from Frankfurt.

Last November 1, Kima El Berhihi, the fiancée of a human rights defender, was arrested, tortured, and released by the Moroccan intelligence services in Larache in northern Morocco. Once released, she filed a complaint with the nearest police station despite having been threatened with a further arrest by the intelligence services officials. The police have refused to register her complaint.

Karima El Berhihi left her home at around ten in the morning on the day in question.

The Iraqi government must stop meddling in the administration of justice and threatening judges and lawyers.

Opening a new chapter of the issue of Arab prisoners in Iraq , the Iraqi authorities proceeded on 18 October 2012 to arrest the Libyan envoy mandated to negotiate the repatriation of the Libyan detainees in Iraq. After facilitating the release of a number of Libyans in recent months, Mr Ahmed Saleh Al Shami will now depend on similar assistance to regain his liberty.

Yemeni security forces at Sana'a international airport arrested six citizens upon their arrival from Iraq at midnight on 14 October 2012.