Stichting Al Amal for Human Rights and Justice has released a report documenting the most significant human rights violations that accompanied the 1448 AH / 2026 Ashura season in Bahrain. The findings reflect the continued restrictions imposed on freedom of religion or belief and on the peaceful practice of religious rituals.
According to the report, 122 arrests were documented in connection with the observance of Ashura religious ceremonies. The report also documents the targeting of 53 religious scholars and 4 religious reciters, in addition to the summoning and detention of several officials responsible for Ma’tams (Shi’a mourning halls) and Hussainiya organizations.
The report further documents a series of violations, including restrictions on the organization of religious activities, the removal of Ashura flags and banners, the arrest of individuals protesting the removal of religious symbols, the sentencing of a social activist to one month in prison over a social media post related to Ashura, and the prevention of a number of citizens from travelling to visit the holy shrines in Karbala and Mashhad.
The report also notes that the total number of documented arrests since the outbreak of the regional conflict has reached 628, while 118 court judgments of varying sentences have been issued, affecting 3 women and 8 foreign nationals.
The Centre concludes that these practices are inconsistent with Bahrain’s obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), particularly Articles 14, 18, 19, and 21, which guarantee the right to a fair trial, freedom of thought, conscience and religion, freedom of opinion and expression, and the right to peaceful assembly.
Stichting Al Amal for Human Rights and Justice calls on the Bahraini authorities to end the targeting of religious ceremonies, release all individuals detained solely for the peaceful exercise of their fundamental rights, and uphold Bahrain’s international human rights obligations.