Oman: Officials threaten to shut down newspaper

August 15th, 2011

 Omani officials are threatening to shut down Al-Zaman, an independent newspaper, after it published allegations of corruption in the Ministry of Justice.  Youssef al-Haj was interrogated for writing the articles questioning the Ministry’s decision to prevent Haroun al-Mukbeeli, a long-time civil servant, from appealing a refusal to provide him with an increase in salary and grade. He was eventually ordered to stop any protest of the decision. Following the release of the article, officials banned Al-Haj from writing, and he could potentially serve time in prison.  The editor-in-chief of the paper, Ibrahim al-Ma’mari, was also interrogated by officials.

Oman: Six protesters killed in clashes with police

February 28th, 2011

Pro-reform demonstrators in the industrial town of Sohar have clashed with police, leading to the deaths of six protesters. The protesters, demanding political and economic reforms, had blocked roads, attacked government buildings, and tried to free detainees from the town’s police station.