Imprisoned political and human rights leaders call on the Bahrain authorities to end crackdown out of concern for the country pic.twitter.com/N4VOxri34k
— Maryam Alkhawaja (@MARYAMALKHAWAJA) May 14, 2026
Introduction
After the US and Israel’s attack on Iran in late February 2026, neighbouring countries embarked on curbing freedoms amid Iran’s retaliation, threatening further deterioration of fundamental freedoms in the region. As the conflict expanded, with Iran targeting Israel and neighbouring countries hosting US forces such as Bahrain, UAE, Kuwait and Qatar, a wider securitisation of civic space emerged across the region, as countries moved to clamp down on free expression regarding the war.
In Bahrain, authorities have been exploiting the war on Iran to launch a wide-ranging and ongoing series of human rights violations. This has included a systematic campaign of arrests and detention that has targeted prominent human rights defenders and political leaders, hundreds of religious figures, peaceful protesters, online activists, and those who oppose government policies and direction. Other notable violations have included the suppression of citizens’ public freedoms, particularly freedom of expression online and offline, and the prevention of citizens from practising their religious rites during the Ashura season.
General Update
Former Member of the Bahraini Council of Representatives speaks on torture and ongoing violations in Bahrain
On 23rd February 2026, the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) published an interview with Jawad Fairooz, Bahraini human rights defender and founder of OMCT’s SOS-Torture Network member organisation SALAM for Democracy and Human Rights. Fairooz, who is also a former Member of the Bahraini Council of Representatives, currently lives in exile after years of persecution by the authorities, including detention, torture, and the revocation of his nationality. As the UN Committee Against Torture reviews Bahrain, Fairooz reflected in the interview on the country’s human rights record and the repression he suffered as a direct retaliation against his peaceful human rights work.
He noted that although Bahrain has been marked by grave human rights violations since the crackdown against the Arab Spring protests in 2011, human rights abuses have been ongoing for decades in Bahrain, which continues to carry out executions and arbitrarily detain human rights defenders and other civil society actors. Moreover, there is a troubling practice of revoking the nationality of those who are critical of the authorities.
Fairooz explained that OMCT classifies Bahrain as “very high risk” for torture because there are no clear mechanisms to hold senior officials responsible. Victims are denied remedies, redress, and rehabilitation. Even after release, former detainees struggle to regain basic civil and political rights. They face obstacles in obtaining employment, housing, and other services.
CSOs file sanctions request against Bahrain’s Interior Minister
In early February 2026, Deighton Pierce Glynn solicitors filed a request for UK sanctions against Bahrain’s Interior Minister, General Shaikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa, under the UK’s Global Human Rights Sanctions Regulations 2020. The request was filed on behalf of leading human rights organisations such as the Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR) and the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD). The request is also supported by Human Rights First. It seeks targeted financial and travel sanctions against the Interior Minister for his role in serious rights abuses against the Bahraini people.
The request came as Bahrain marked the 15th anniversary of its 2011 pro-democracy uprising on 14th February. The impact of the Bahraini Government’s brutal crackdown continues to haunt the country, with leading pro-democracy figures remaining jailed since 2011 following sham trials and confessions made under torture. They include prominent human rights defenders Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja and Dr. Abduljalil Al-Singace, who have both been tortured in prison and who have resorted to hunger strikes to protest poor prison conditions and reprisals for their ongoing activism.
The NGO coalition called for the Interior Minister to be held accountable for his role in serious and systematic human rights violations in Bahrain, including allegations of torture and arbitrary detention of political dissidents and human rights defenders. Documented abuses include physical beatings, the use of torture devices, sexual violence, and rape. The submission sets out evidence of the Minister’s responsibility for widespread abuses carried out by Bahrain’s Ministry of Interior since 2004, encompassing the violent suppression of the 2011 uprising and the years of systematic persecution that followed.
The evidence, which documents a pattern of torture in Bahrain over the last decade, presents a significant test of the UK Government’s commitment to upholding human rights standards, particularly regarding human rights abuses that are linked to close allies of the UK. It comes amid growing concern that the UK’s deepening security cooperation with Bahrain, despite persistent and credible evidence of human rights violations, risks shielding abusive officials and undermining Britain’s own legal and moral obligations.
At the same time, on 9th February 2026, a group of cross-party MPs tabled an Early Day Motion (EDM) which called “for the imposition of Magnitsky sanctions against individuals responsible for serious human rights violations, including the Interior Minister”.
The filing came two weeks after GCHR published an extensive report on detention-related torture and ill-treatment in several countries, including Bahrain.
Expression and Association
Since the war began in late February 2026, authorities have conducted a relentless series of arrests, detaining dozens of individuals, including children and foreign nationals, for filming, sharing, or expressing sympathy regarding the conflict on social media. At least 200 people have been detained for expressing their personal opinions about the war on Iran on social media, and for participating in peaceful demonstrations. They are being held in secret locations, isolated from the outside world, and without being allowed to contact their families or lawyers. Detainees have been charged under a recurring set of offences, including "spreading false news," "glorifying terrorism," and "undermining public order," with several cases resulting in sentences of up to ten years and, in one case, life imprisonment.
On 16th March 2026, the Ministry of Interior issued a warning against using social media accounts to “photograph, publish, or recirculate any image, video, or information that constitutes a threat to the security and safety of the nation.”
Several activists have been among those detained, while cases of torture and death in custody have also been reported:
Writer and labour activist Khalil Yaqoub Buhazaa was arrested on 3rd May 2026 after he was summoned for questioning regarding his writings and social media posts. He remained in detention from 5th May until his release on 15th June 2026 when the public prosecution dropped charges of incitement against the government and spreading false news that had been preferred against him.
On 9th May 2026, the Bahraini Ministry of Interior announced the arrest of 41 religious scholars following widespread raids on their homes. They were charged with fabricated offences, including espionage and raising funds to finance terrorist operations carried out by foreign entities, after being accused of being in direct contact with, and financially supporting, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.
Cases of torture and killing of detained activists have also been documented. In late March 2026, the family of HRD and former prisoner of conscience, Mohammed Abdulmohsen Al-Mousawi, received his body which reportedly bore signs of torture. He had been arbitrarily arrested by security forces alongside his cousins, Ahmed Al-Mousawi and Mustafa Al-Mousawi, while they were travelling to attend a religious gathering. The three men were taken to an undisclosed location and held incommunicado. While authorities alleged they were involved in espionage for foreign entities, credible sources indicate that their detention was instead linked to opinions they had expressed on social media. The whereabouts and fate of Ahmed and Mustafa Al-Mousawi remain unknown. Mohammed Al-Mousawi had previously spent 12 years in prison as a prisoner of conscience before being released in 2024.
Prominent human rights and environmental activist Mohammed Jawad Hameed also remains in detention after he was arbitrarily arrested on 7th April 2026 for critising on social media the death of torture victim, HRD Mohammed Al-Mousawi (see above paragraph). His detention has since been repeatedly extended, including on 16th June 2026 on a charge of "hatred of the regime”, further illustrating the use of indefinite pretrial detention to punish public criticism.
Authorities have also weaponised draconian citizenship laws to clamp down on dissent and opinions around the war. On 27th April 2026, the Bahraini authorities revoked the citizenship of 69 people, more than half of whom were children, leaving 46 of them stateless. Although the affected families trace their ancestry to Iran, many had been born in Bahrain and had lived there for generations. Citing Article 10/3 of the Bahraini Nationality Law, which permits the revocation of citizenship from anyone who “causes harm to the interests of the Kingdom or acts in a manner contrary to the duty of loyalty to it,” authorities accused the individuals of allegedly sympathising with "Iranian hostile acts" or "collaboration with foreign entities," accusing them of supporting Iranian attacks against Bahrain. Those affected were reportedly compelled to sign documents acknowledging the loss of their citizenship and their imminent deportation. The decisions were carried out without due process, and with no meaningful opportunity to challenge or appeal them. After efforts to deport some of those affected to Iran were unsuccessful, authorities deported them to Oman, while others travelled to Europe, where they have sought political asylum. GCHR notes that the authorities claimed that the revocation of citizenship from these individuals was due to their sympathy with “Iranian hostile acts” or “collaboration with foreign entities.” On 2nd May 2026, GCHR along with 12 partner human rights organisations, issued a joint appeal expressing its “grave concern regarding the Bahraini government’s continued violation of its international human rights obligations.” The appeal called upon “world leaders to urge the Bahraini government to reverse its decision of 27 April 2026 to arbitrarily revoke the citizenship of at least 69 Bahraini citizens and to explicitly commit to ending the policy of citizenship revocation.”
Concerned about the scale of ongoing violations in the country, five detained leaders in Jaw Central Prison, including Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja issued a joint appeal on 14th May 2026, calling on the Bahraini authorities to halt the crackdown, release all prisoners of conscience, and emphasised the importance of opening a serious national dialogue to address the crises.
In separate developments, on 17th February 2026, prominent political activist and former Secretary-General of the National Democratic Action Society (Wa’ad), Ibrahim Sharif, a leading figure in the society, was released after spending 97 days in prison following his arbitrary arrest.