29-30-31 Oct 2016

BAHRAIN MEDIA ROUNDUP

question was managed by
him.

Bahrain activist's trial

postponed to December
15 - rights group
Bahrain
on
Monday
postponed until Dec. 15
the trial of prominent
democracy activist Nabeel
Rajab to permit more
investigation of a Twitter
account he is accused of
using to publish criticism
of the government, the
government and his human
rights group said.
Rajab's Bahrain Centre for
Human Rights said the High
Criminal Court postponed
the trial for a fourth time
to enable it to hire a cyber
crime expert to verify
that the Twitter handle in

In
a
statement,
the
government said: "The court
took the decision to allow
time for expert analysis to
be conducted on a digital
platform managed by Rajab
to confirm if the statements
posted on the account were
carried out by another
author."
It added that the charges,
classified as criminal under
the penal code, included
promoting "misleading and
inaccurate
information
about
Bahrain
and
disseminating rumours at a
time of war," a reference to
Yemen, where a coalition
of Arab countries including
Bahrain is fighting the
Iranian-allied Houthi group.

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violence and encouraging

demonstrations
which
threatened
to
spark
sectarian strife.

Bahrain
opposition
group appeals against
dissolution
Bahrain's
main
Shiite
opposition
group
has
appealed against a court
ruling that it should be
dissolved over terrorismrelated charges, a judicial
official said Sunday.
"Al-Wefaq has filed an
appeal to the Court of
Cassation"
against
its
dissolution and the seizure
of its assets, the official said.
A court in the Sunni-ruled
Gulf monarchy ordered
the group's dissolution
in July for "harbouring
terrorism",
inciting

Bahrain blocks exit

of activist's wife, son,
rights groups say
Bahrain
authorities
prevented the wife of a
Bahraini dissident and their
infant son, a U.S. citizen,
from boarding a flight to
London after he staged a
protest against a visit by the
Gulf state's king to Britain,
human rights groups said.
Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei,
director of advocacy at the
UK-based Bahrain Institute
for Rights and Democracy,
was one of two activists
briefly detained by police
in London when they
shouted at the king's car as it
approached Prime Minister
Theresa May's office on

"Duaa Alwadaei has now

been banned from leaving
Bahrain, although she has
UK residency," UK legal
charity
Reprieve
said,
adding Bahraini police
and members of the public
threatened Seyed Ahmed
Alwadaei and his family in
recent days.

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In mid-October, a court
ordered that Al-Wefaq's
confiscated
assets
be
auctioned on Oct. 26, later
postponed to November 6.
Al-Wefaq's leader, Sheikh
Ali Salman, has been behind
bars since December 2014
on charges of inciting hatred
and calling for forceful
regime change.

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has been dismantled, while

activists have been detained
and others have had their
citizenship stripped by the
country's Sunni rulers.

Wednesday.
Hours later, the exile's
Bahraini wife, Duaa, 25,
and their 19-month-old
son were detained for seven
hours at Bahrain airport as
they tried to fly out of the
kingdom to join him in
London, rights groups said.

The decision, upheld by an

appeals court in September,
drew
strong
criticism
from U.N. chief Ban Kimoon, Bahrain's allies in
Washington and London,
and Shiite-dominated Iran.

Family of activist who

jumped on Bahrain
king's car targeted
A pro-democracy activist
said Saturday his wife was
beaten and detained for
hours in Bahrain after he
jumped on a car carrying
the island's king during his
recent visit to London.
The experience of Sayed
Alwadaei's wife, Duaa,
comes amid a crackdown on
dissent in Bahrain, the likes
of which has been unseen
since its Arab Springinspired protests were put
down in 2011. Its main
Shiite opposition group

Alwadaei
was
among
several protesters outside 10
Downing St. on Wednesday,
ahead of British Prime
Minister
Theresa
May
meeting with King Hamad
bin Isa Al Khalifa. As King
Hamad's black luxury car
approached, Alwadaei and
others rushed forward,
jumping on the car and
kicking at it while shouting.
Police briefly detained
Alwadaei before letting
him ago. Protesters' shouts
of "Down Hamad!" could
be heard inside the prime
minister's residence during
her meeting with the king.

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