Increased anger within Bahrain's opposition over the continued detention of well-known activist Abdulhadi Alkhawaja has renewed concerns over whether Formula 1's organising body should allow the controversial race to go ahead on 20-22 April. Over...
CATEGORY: Middle East and North Africa
Palestinian authorities arrest and detain critics for Facebook posts
Two arrests linked to Facebook posts critical of the Palestinian Authority (PA) have spurred a variety of human rights and media freedom groups to call on the PA to stop harassing their critics. On Wednesday 28 March, Palestinian Preventative...
Tunisia: Journalists and bloggers assaulted on “Martyrs’ Day” protest
Anti-government protesters clashed with police in the streets of Tunis over the weekend as they attempted to defy a ban prohibiting demonstrations on the capital's main avenue. Protesters raising anti-government slogans took to the streets on 9...
Bahraini activist Abdulhadi Alkhawaja deteriorating rapidly in prison
Bahraini human rights activist Abdulhadi AlKhawaja is now entering the 58th day of his hunger strike, having spent his 51st birthday yesterday in a prison clinic. His lawyer has tweeted a picture of him in his weak and critical state, a far cry...
Palestinian journalist detained for covering corruption scandal
Journalist Yousef Al Shayeb, detained by the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank town of Ramallah, was released on bail on Monday “pending investigation” after eight days of incarceration. Al Shayeb began a hunger strike “in the name of press...
Street artists under fire in Tunisia
“Our theatre is the street," said Nasreddine Ben Maâti, President of Eich el-Fan ("live the art" in English), a young association dedicated to street art. “Tunisian citizens are boycotting theaters and cinemas so we decided to go for the people...
Tunisia: Al Jazeera journalist expelled from meeting, attacked
A Tunisian journalist was physically attacked after being ejected from a political meeting last week. Al Jazeera journalist Lotfi Hajji was officially invited to a meeting on 24 March which brought together several political parties, but was...
Ministry of Interior bans protests on the capital’s main avenue
The Tunisian Ministry of Interior has issued a ban on protests on Habib Bourguiba Avenue in Tunis, the capital’s main avenue. The ministry claims that it took such decision following complaints received from commercial and touristic businesses...

Bahrain Center for Human Rights win Advocacy Award sponsored by Bindmans
Bahrain Centre for Human Rights accept the Advocacy Award, which recognises campaigners or activists who have fought repression, or have struggled to challenge political climates and perceptions The Bahrain Centre for Human Rights (BCHR) has played...

Gayday Magazine: Tunisia’s first LGBT magazine
Living in a conservative society, where homosexuality is illegal, the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community in Tunisia faces enormous pressures. Gays and Lesbians in Tunisia often keep quiet about their sexual orientations, and it is...