End the Death Sentence against Sultan and Thamer and Bring Them Back to Bahrain

#EndTheDeathSentence is a slogan launched by Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain in its campaign to demand the commutation of the death sentences against the two Bahraini young men, Sadeq Thamer and Jaafar Sultan, who are sentenced to death in Saudi Arabia. The campaign also demands their immediate release, as they are at risk of imminent execution at any moment after exhausting all legal remedies. ADHRB also urges pressure on Bahrain to demand the return of Sadeq Thamer and Jaafar Sultan and to overturn the sentences issued against them.

In the spirit of these demands, the organization has sent letters to the Foreign Affairs Committee, the Chairperson, and members of the Joint Committee on Human Rights in the US Congress, the British Parliament, the Swiss Parliament, the Norwegian Parliament, and the Icelandic Parliament, as well as to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, urging those bodies to take actions:

. Expressing deep concern about the conditions of detention of Sadeq Thamer and Jaafar Sultan and their imminent risk of execution;

. Exerting pressure through relevant diplomatic channels to demand that Saudi Arabia and Bahrain put an end to human rights violations and reduce the use of the death penalty with the goal of abolishing it; and

. Raising the issue in all international forums and on social media platforms to halt the executions of Sadeq Thamer and Jaafar Sultan and secure their immediate release.

The campaign will continue on social media for a week, with a number of posts being released under the hashtag #EndTheDeathSentence on the organization’s accounts on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, along with a number of infographics that document the case of the two young men. The spotlight will be on the main demands outlined in the message.

Read the full article here

Abbas Ismaeel Ghuloom

Updated: Abbas Ismaeel Ghuloom was a professional football player in Bahrain, having played for the Manama Club and the national team between the years 2000 and 2002. He graduated from Ahlia University and worked as an accountant in the Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait for seven years. In March 2011, he was violently arrested, tortured, and subjected to various forms of human rights violations, including unfair trial procedures by the Bahraini Authorities. He was sentenced to more than 15 years in prison and remains arbitrarily detained in Jau Prison.

On 24 March 2011, at exactly 2 am, while the family members were sleeping, more than 20 masked and armed policemen raided his family home. Security officers broke their front and garage doors in order to enter the house. On the other hand, the house was surrounded by another group that the family could not even identify. The arrest was warrantless and violent: the officers woke the entire family asking Abbas’s parents a lot of questions, not taking into consideration that they suffer from diabetes and high blood pressure. Abbas was immediately arrested, handcuffed from behind and blindfolded. He was beaten in front of his family and was taken to an unknown location. After this scene, his mother fainted and passed out and his sister became hysterical because she was scared. Policemen insulted, cursed and discriminated against the whole family on sectarian grounds. Abbas was not wanted by the authorities. He did not receive any summons, and during the raid, the policemen did not mention the reason for his arrest.

Read the full article here