Articles for Bahrain

During its May 2016 session, the Sub-Committee on Accreditation (SCA) ) of the Global Alliance of National Institutions for the Protection and Promotion of Human Rights (GANHRI) granted Bahrain's National Institution for Human Rights' (NIHR) the B status.

Alkarama expresses its deep concern over the recent developments and violations of human rights in Bahrain. In the past month alone, the authorities once again arrested prominent activist Nabeel Rajab, suspended Bahrain's main opposition party Al Wefaq and overturned the acquittal of its Secretary General Sheikh Ali Salman.

On April 9, 2016 the Hamad Town Police Station summoned 15 year old Bassel Abbas Ali Hassan Jayed for interrogation which lasted over five hours and during which he was subjected to electroshocks, beaten, kicked and slapped on the face and the head and forced to stand up in stress positions. Bassel was released on the morning of April 10 only to be called back a couple of hours later to undergo interrogation at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations.

In the early morning of 20 February 2016, about 12 members of the Intelligence Services of the Criminal Investigation Directorate in civilian clothes stormed the house of 17-year-old student Fadhel Abbas Ali Hassan Jayed. After searching his room, they arrested him and confiscated his phone. No warrant was shown and they did not provide any explanation for the arrest. Fadhel was then taken to the Criminal Investigation Directorate, where he was tortured with electric shocks, beaten, kicked and slapped on the face and head by masked men.

On 5 and 6 December 2016, five young men from the town of Bani Jamrah in north-western Bahrain were arrested from their homes by masked men in civilian clothing between 2 and 6 am. The men, including two minors, were repeatedly beaten all over their body, shackled and forced to stand up for two whole days before being forced to confess to the charge of “participating in demonstrations”.

On 26 January 2015, 21-year-old student Mohamed Faraj, who suffers from multiple sclerosis, was arrested from the courtroom after being sentenced by Bahrain's Fourth Criminal Court to seven years imprisonment for arson, illegal gathering and rioting. Mohamed was taken in his wheelchair to the Jaw prison, known for its "severe abuses" of prisoners, to serve his sentence.

On 3 February 2016, 25-year-old photojournalist Ahmed Jaber Al Fardan was arrested, after being sentenced to three months imprisonment for allegedly attempting to attend an illegal gathering in 2013. Considering his detention arbitrary, on 5 February 2016, Alkarama sent an urgent appeal to the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD), requesting it to call upon the Bahraini authorities to immediately release Al Fardan.

On 15 January 2016, Alkarama submitted a report to the Sub-Committee on Accreditation (SCA) of the International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (ICC-NHRI) on Bahrain's National Institution for Human Righ

On 2 December 2015, members of the Bahraini Security Forces arrested 21-year-old student Ali Abduljalil Mohamed Hassan and took him to the Criminal Investigation Directorate in Manama, where he has been detained incommunicado ever since. Concerned over these facts, on 22 December 2015, Alkarama sent an urgent appeal to the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD), requesting itto urge the Bahraini authorities to release Ali immediately.

On 5 November 2015, members of the Security Forces stormed into the house of 31-year-old security manager Ali Issa Ali Al Tajer and arrested him without presenting a warrant, taking him to an unknown location, where he was detained incommunicado for 25 days. On 30 November, he was charged with terrorism based on confessions obtained under torture.