Bahrain sentences activist to 5 years in prison

E-Paper | June 15, 2026

A court in Bahrain on Wednesday sentenced a prominent activist to five years in prison over tweets, criticising the Saudi Arabia's war in Yemen and alleging torture at a prison in his country.

The case against Nabeel Rajab, a major figure in the island nation's 2011 Arab Spring protests, has been widely criticised by the global community.

Rajab previously had been sentenced to two years in prison over television interviews he gave that included criticisms of Bahrain, an island off Saudi Arabia that's home to the United States Navy's 5th Fleet.

Rajab has been detained since June 2016 as part of a wide crackdown on all dissent in Bahrain. He has been hospitalised several times during his incarceration over heart problems and ulcers.

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Asim

Feb 21, 2018 01:57pm

They can't even tolerate criticism.

Recommend 0

Dr. Salaria, Aamir Ahmad

Feb 21, 2018 02:39pm

What else can the Kingdom of Bahrain do to protect it's soverignity, Independence and territorial integrity? In fact, real freedom of speech, thought, movement and press does not exist any where in the world including the U.S.

Recommend 0

Panocha

Feb 21, 2018 06:10pm

So much personal freedom in the middle east.

Recommend 0

Sameer

Feb 21, 2018 07:10pm

Those happily imprisoning freedom of speech should remember that the same thing will happen to them one day! No one stays in power for ever! Democracy is coming to Saudia Hard.

Recommend 0

Syed Hussain Akbari

Feb 22, 2018 08:45am

Majority of the population does not have any right of frank utterance on the happenings in Bahrain. A former US President on his visit to the country expressed his opinion saying that there was full freedom of speech in Bahrain. He knew that he was lying. There is and has never been any freedom of speech even in any of the surrounding countries. US the Godfather of those countries want it that way. If Bahrain wants to be respected they should come out of the grip of KSA and form a system with the cooperation of the majority population and part ways with tyranny.

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