Bahrain Mirror: Amnesty International called on the Bahrain authorities to halt its intensified crackdown on the rights to freedom of expression, association and movement after a week which has seen "the suspension of the country's main opposition group Al-Wefaq National Islamic Society and the stripping of the nationality of its spiritual leader, and the arrest of prominent human rights defender and prisoner of conscience Nabeel Rajab."

It said in a statement on Friday (June 24, 2016), the authorities rendered Sheikh Isa Qassim "stateless as he has no other nationality. He has become the 280th person to have his nationality arbitrarily revoked in Bahrain since 2012," considering stripping citizens of their nationality without due process protections is arbitrary and in violation of Bahrain's international human rights obligations.

The organization expressed its deep concern by the Bahrain authorities' move to suspend Al-Wefaq. Encouraging peaceful protests, peacefully criticising the Bahraini authorities and its constitutional legitimacy are legitimate forms of freedom of association and expression.

Concerning the campaign launched against human rights defenders last week, Amnesty said that a group of five activists including human rights defenders were prevented from leaving Bahrain to attend the UN Human Rights Council 32nd session in Geneva. Jalila al-Salman vice president of Bahrain Teachers Society and member of Bahrain Human Rights Observatory was prevented from leaving Bahrain. She was planning to attend the Arthur Svensson award ceremony in Oslo. Besides,  human rights defender Abdulnabi Al-Ekri was prevented from travelling to Geneva.

Arabic Version