07 Jun 12 | Index Index, Middle East and North Africa, minipost
Index on Censorship award winner Nabeel Rajab was re-arrested yesterday for allegedly insulting citizens of a predominantly Sunni village on the popular social networking site, Twitter. According to prosecutors, Rajab was taken into custody to investigate charges filed by citizens of Muharraq, who are accusing the activist of publicly insulting them and “questioning their patriotism”. Rajab, who is also head of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR), has slammed the new charges, calling them “vindictive accusations”. He was last released on bail on 28 May, and still faces charges of “illegal protesting” and insulting public officials on Twitter.
29 May 12 | Middle East and North Africa
Index on Censorship welcomes yesterday’s release of prominent rights activist and Index 2012 Award winner Nabeel Rajab, and calls for all charges against the activist to be dropped (more…)
29 May 12 | Index Index, minipost
Prominent Bahraini rights activist Abdulhadi Alkhawaja ended his hunger strike yesterday (28 May), according to his lawyer, Mohammad Al-Jishi. Alkhawaja, who was on hunger strike for 110 days, started his hunger strike on 8 February saying that he would strike until “freedom or death”. The former head of Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) was brought to a hearing last Tuesday in a wheelchair, where he told the court about being force-fed during his hunger strike. He is currently serving a life sentence for his involvement in anti-government protests last year. Al-Jishi used the social networking site Twitter to announce the end of the strike, saying that it had “generally achieved its results to shed the light on the case of the detainees in Bahrain”.
28 May 12 | Index Index, Middle East and North Africa, minipost
Prominent rights activist and head of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR), Nabeel Rajab was released on bail this morning according to his lawyer. Rajab was arrested upon his arrival to Manama’s international airport earlier this month. The activist was released on bail of 300 BD (£500), but still faces charges of “insulting an authority” on the social networking site Twitter, as well as “organising illegal protests”. Earlier this year, Rajab accepted the Index on Censorship Advocacy Award in London on behalf of the BCHR.
