United Arab Emirates - Alerts
The activists have been accused of being foreign countries' agents and of threatening the security of the country.
Authorities were urged to end the crackdown immediately, and release all activists detained for exercising their rights to free expression.
Ahmed Abd al-Khaleq is one of a group of activists who had been jailed from April to November 2011 for peacefully advocating democratic reforms.
Ahmed Abdul Khaleq is currently being held in Abu Dhabi’s Al-Wathba prison, but is due to be deported to Comoros under a 2009 agreement between the United Arab Emirates and the Indian Ocean island nation.
The new arrests, of Saleh al-Dhufairi and Salem Sahooh, bring to 11 the total number of detained members of the group, the Reform and Social Guidance Association (al-Islah), since late March 2012.
Sheikh Sultan Bin Kayed Al Qassimi was arrested following the publication of an article where he defended the "UAE 7", the seven citizens who had their citizenships revoked by the authorities following their call for reform.
Six activists whose citizenship was revoked by the government have been asked to pledge to take on another nationality. They were arrested following their refusal to commit to such a pledge.
The Dubai office of the National Democratic Institute and the Abu Dhabi office of The Konrad Adenauer Foundation were closed following government orders in what appears to be a growing crackdown on critical voices.
Ahmed Ghaith Al Suwaidi and Ahmed Yousef Buatabh Zaabi were arrested on 26 March, without a warrant, and are being held in detention.
Mohammed Abdul Razzaq Al-Siddiq, one of seven activists who has had his nationality revoked, was arrested after he published a statement on his Twitter page criticizing the latest statements by the Governor of Sharjah, Sultan Al Qassimi.
Saleh al-Dhafeery was released on bail after being arrested in March on charges of sedition, and harming national unity and social peace.
Saleh al-Dhafeery was arrested on 5 March 2011 after expressing critical opinions of the regime in general and the State Security in particular during a talk show on al-Hiwar TV channel.
The government revoked the residency permits of about 50 Syrians who participated in a peaceful protest on 10 February, giving them 10 days to leave the country.
Two hundred activists were stripped of their residency visas after they protested in front of the Syrian consulate in Dubai.
Travelling with human rights lawyer Abdel Hameed AlKameety, Ahmed Mansoor was prevented from entering the country "on the instructions of the Emirati security service," and was threatened with detention.
After eight months in prison, and a trial riddled with inconsistencies, the group still face challenges from authorities such as travel restrictions and a refusal to expunge their records.
The activists said the hunger strike will continue until authorities release them unconditionally and end all judicial proceedings against them.
The threats against Ahmed Mansoor followed the launch of an organised defamation campaign aimed at portraying him as a traitor to his country.
ANHRI has received information that Ahmed Mansour is being mistreated in detention and has recently faced attempts by fellow prisoners to incite him to violence.
The website of "El Badil Al Thalith" was blocked as a result of pressure from Emirati authorities on the hosting company after it published a series of articles criticising Arab leaders.
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