Bahrain starts the new year by tightening the grip on freedom of expression

The Bahraini authorities have tightened its grip on political dissent in Bahrain with new arrests of individuals at the beginning of 2016 for peacefully exercising their right to freedom of expression, including on social media, following the execution of prominent Saudi Arabian Shi’a cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr on 1 January. The new year also saw the resumption of trials of three leading political opposition figures, all prisoners of conscience. The organization has today urged the authorities to release all prisoners of conscience in Bahrain and to uphold the right to freedom of expression.

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