More Bahrainis detained, Open letter to UNOCT on Saudi HR
The khalifi regime of Bahrain has continued arrests and detentions. Today its agents arrested Mohammed Al Singace from the heart of Manama. He was holding a small banner with his demand for work while standing peacefully to attract attention. He was handcuffed and treated as a criminal. AlSingacewas released later. His case is embarrassing the khalifis and their backers as his arrest could not be justified. Last year he was made redundant at a time of soaring prices. His daily protest outside the ministry of Labour has embarrassed the khalifi regime which has failed thousands of native Bahrainis as they struggle to achieve decent survival.
On Sunday 26th October regime’s forces arrested Bahraini youth NasrAllah Jaffar, 17 (from Bilad Al Qadeem town). He had responded to a summons to appear at Al Khamis police station, and was detained to serve three months as part of a six-month imposed earlier. Regime’s courts have also sentenced Sayed Jaffar Yousuf to three months for taking part in a peaceful protest. On Thursday 23rd October, Ali Al Mutawwa, a native youth from Ras Rumman was detained when he attended the CID offices after receiving a summons. On Monday27th October under-aged native Jawad Hussain Ali was taken away from the courtroom to serve a six-month sentence imposed on him by a khalifi-appointed judge. He appealed the sentence, but the boy was put placed behind bars.
Native citizen Husain Al Oraibi was detained by the regime’s torturers when he attended a police station in response to a summons. Also, blogger Hussain Al Ibrahim was detained and remanded in custody for seven days for expressing sympathy with a young man lost at sea. Abdulla Yousuf was lost last week when his boat was attacked by a coastguard vessel in the middle of the sea. No action has been taken against those who caused the accident that led to the death of a citizen who was working to earn his livelihood. Despite intensive search by volunteers, his body has not been recovered from the sea.
Bahraini activists have continued their protests against the khalifi dictatorship and for the release of the political prisoners. On Friday the people of Demstan town took part in a protest raising the slogan “our right is clear”. A group of activists in Samaheej town formed a group to make regular visits to the families of the political prisoners to express support and solidarity.
The renowned human rights activist, Abdulhadi al-Khawaja has begun what supporters described as an “open-ended” hunger strike while detained at the Jaw prison in Bahrain. A previous hunger strike by the 64-year-old activist, who also holds Danish citizenship, lasted for 110 days in 2012 — and a doctor now is warning the Danish government that al-Khawaja is already 10 kilograms (22 pounds) underweight and has a heart condition that could worsen. “Despite Mr. Khawaja’s ability to endure severe malnutrition and dehydration in the past, my assessment is that he will be at high risk of death in a hunger strike of any duration,” Dr. Damian McCormack wrote.
Despite completing his prison term over two years ago, Saudi human rights defender and ACPRA co-founder Mohammed al-Bejadi faced a retrial. On Monday 27 October, the Special Criminal Court (SSC) in Riyadh sentenced the human rights defender to 25 years in prison. This is one of the worst cases of revenge against opponents by the Saudi regime.
The UK Chancellor is on a visit to Saudi Arabia aiming to secure the UK-GCC Free Trade Agreement, which has been marked by a lack of transparency. Human rights bodies including ALQST and partners have urged the UK to commit to strong human rights conditions before signing any agreement.
There is unease among Saudi pro-democracy and human rights activists after the Saudi regime appointed a new “mufti” in the kingdom. Sheikh Saleh Al Fawzan has replaced Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Abdulla Aal-Alsheikh who died in September. The new mufti is known for his indifference to human rights abuses, reactionary views on women’s rights and is a staunch defender of the regime’s harsh treatment of anti-regime activists. He was the first to get a PhD from Mohammed bin Saud University in Riyadh.
MENA Rights Group and ALQST for Human Rights have addressed an open letter to Mr. Alexandre Zouev, newly appointed Acting Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT), expressing human rights concerns on the UN office's relationship with Saudi authorities and its Presidency of State Security (PSS). It said: “The credibility and integrity of the UN counter-terrorism architecture depend on your willingness to prioritize human rights over financial considerations and to hold accountable those who abuse counter-terrorism frameworks to commit widespread human rights violations.”
Bahrain Freedom Movement
29th October 2025 (info@vob.org, www.vob.org)
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