30 March 2011
BAHRAIN
There has been no news of the blogger Ali Abdulemam since 16 March when around 40 gunmen raided his sister’s home, where he had been holed up since the arrests of several government opponents. His niece has described the incident on Facebook. Since then, his Twitter blog has been silent, aside from a message saying he was turning off his mobile phone, “which isn’t like him,” relatives say. He was released under a royal pardon on 23 February after several months in prison.
30 March 2011
BAHRAIN
There has been no news of the blogger Ali Abdulemam since 16 March when around 40 gunmen raided his sister’s home, where he had been holed up since the arrests of several government opponents. His niece has described the incident on Facebook. Since then, his Twitter blog has been silent, aside from a message saying he was turning off his mobile phone, “which isn’t like him,” relatives say. He was released under a royal pardon on 23 February after several months in prison.
Fellow blogger Abduljalil Al-Singace, who was also one of the government opponents freed in February, did not escape the wave of arrests on 16 March. He has not been allowed to contact his family since his arrest. As he was tortured during his previous spell in prison, Reporters Without Borders is concerned at the possibility that he is being mistreated again.
The blogger and human rights activist Sayid Yousif Al-Muhafdah has also been missing since 19 March, when the authorities arrested two activists and four doctors in a series of nighttime raids. The police have threatened his family, telling them they will return every night if he does not report to the police station.
Reporters Without Borders calls for an immediate halt to the harassment of Bahraini Internet users and for the release of bloggers who are being held in violation of the right to free expression.
rsf.org
