Journalists Imprisoned in 2017 - Ali Mearaj
| Publisher | Committee to Protect Journalists |
| Publication Date | 31 December 2017 |
| Cite as | Committee to Protect Journalists, Journalists Imprisoned in 2017 - Ali Mearaj, 31 December 2017, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5a5c9456b.html [accessed 23 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Freelance | Imprisoned in Bahrain | June 05, 2016
| Job: | Internet Reporter |
| Medium: | Internet |
| Beats Covered: | Politics |
| Gender: | Male |
| Local or Foreign: | Local |
| Freelance: | Yes |
| Charge: | Anti-state |
| Length of Sentence: | Life |
| Reported Health Problems: | No |
Bahraini security forces arrested Mearaj on June 5, 2016, at the Manama airport, only two months after he was released from prison where he had been serving a sentence on separate charges also related to his journalism, his brother Mohammed told CPJ.
On June 28, 2016, Mearaj's trial began with 17 other defendants, including Al-Wasat journalist Mahmoud al-Jaziri, on the charge of belonging to an Iranian- and Hezbollah-backed terror cell formed by the banned al-Wafaa political party.
On October 30, 2017, a Bahraini court convicted Mearaj, sentenced the journalist to life in prison, and revoked his citizenship, according to reports.
A journalist who has spoken with the family and who asked to remain anonymous for reasons of security told CPJ that authorities did not provide written copies of the verdicts, which explain the court's decision on sentencing, to Mearaj's lawyer. The journalist added that Mearaj will appeal.
Six months before Mearaj was added to the case, the Bahraini Interior Ministry named al-Jaziri, a reporter for the independent daily Al-Wasat, as among those arrested for allegedly plotting terrorist attacks funded by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Hezbollah, according to a January 1, 2016, report by the official Bahrain News Agency (BNA).
On January 4 of that year al-Jaziri was referred to a special prosecutor for terrorist crimes, who charged him with supporting terrorism, inciting hatred of the regime, contacting a foreign country and giving it information, and seeking to overthrow the regime by joining Al-Wafaa and the February 14 Youth Movement, which has organized protests since the 2011 uprising, according to news reports.
During this time, Mearaj was in prison in relation to a different case, and his name was not mentioned in any of the public announcements concerning the terror case. According to his brother Mohammed, Mearaj was not questioned after his new arrest or informed of charges against him before the June 28, 2016 hearing.
Before the new charge, Mearaj had just completed a jail term on charges of "insulting the king" and "misusing communication devices" in relation to posts he was accused of writing on the opposition website Lulu Awal, according to news reports.
The journalist who has spoken with the family told CPJ that according to the journalist's brother, when the family visited in October 2017, Mearaj's health was ok.
As of late 2017, Mearaj was detained in Jaw Prison.
