Via ThinkProgress, Bahraini human rights activist Nabeel Rajab was arrested today for the crime of insulting the monarchy in a tweet. He is expected to be in jail for up to 3 months, but knowing the US-supported Bahraini regime’s penchant for torture, Rajab could be in real trouble.
Rajab, who heads up the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights and leads pro-democracy demonstrations, has faced a bevy of legal troubles this year for a tweet calling for the Prime Minister — a member of the royal family — to step down. “Normally the charge of insult leads to just a fine. So for me [the prison sentence is] a surprise,” Rajab’s lawyer said. The U.S. government stood up for Rajab when he was beaten by Bahraini security forces in January. Here’s a cell phone video of Rajab being arrested by masked police today posted by EA WorldView:
Rajab appeared on Julian Assange’s RT show in May. See here, here, and here for more of Antiwar.com’s recent coverage of Bahrain.
