Bahrain Mirror: The Bahraini Embassy in London said the two cases in which Bahraini human rights activist Nabeel Rajab was sentenced to prison "do not relate to political views or political expression," according to Reuters.

A Bahraini court sentenced Nabeel Rajab to five years in prison on Wednesday (February 21, 2018) for criticizing Saudi Arabia's airstrikes in Yemen and accusing Bahrain's prison authorities of torture in a number of tweets on his personal account.

The tweets on which Rajab's charges were based included a tweet that said: "We have the right to say no to the war in #Yemen and should struggle for peace and stability but not bloodshed #Sanaa".

We have the right to say no to the war in #Yemen and should struggle for peace and stability but not bloodshed #Sanaa pic.twitter.com/LOXXWM8dO5

— Nabeel Rajab (@NABEELRAJAB) March 28, 2015

In another tweet, Rajab criticized Saudi Arabia for leading a war on Yemen, saying: "Non-democratic governments that do not respect the will and rights of their peoples cannot bring justice and democracy to the peoples of other [governments] - because he who lacks something cannot offer it #Saudi Arabia #Yemen."

حكومات غير ديمقراطية لا تحترم إرادة وحقوق شعوبها لا يمكنها ان تحقق العدالة والديمقراطية لشعوب غيرها-لأن فاقد الشيئ لا يعطيه #السعودية #اليمن

— Nabeel Rajab (@NABEELRAJAB) March 26, 2015

The Prosecution relied on these two tweets to charge Rajab with "spreading false and malicious news and rumors in wartime and deliberately disseminating inflammatory propaganda that would damage the military operations of the Bahraini armed forces and publicly insult foreign countries."

As for the torture and ill treatment practiced against inmates at Jaw Prison during what was known as the Jaw Prison events in March 2015, Rajab tweeted: "Help to save the life of political prisoners in #Bahrain - Silence is part of the crime," using the (Arabic) hashtag #help-jaw-prisoners.

Help to save the life of political prisoners in #Bahrain - Silence is part of the crime الصمت جريمة
أغيثوا_سجناء_جو pic.twitter.com/kpIHPvO5sj

— Nabeel Rajab (@NABEELRAJAB) March 29, 2015

He denounced in another tweet (used in his conviction) the silence of the Ombudsman Office, the Special Investigation Unit, the National Institute for Human Rights and the Prisoners' Commission about what was going on in Jaw Prison.

الامانة الامة للتظلمات ووحدة التحقيق الخاصة والموسسة الوطنية لحقوق الانسان ومفوضية السجناء- لماذا هذا الصمت على ما يحدث في سجن جو ؟ #البحرين

— Nabeel Rajab (@NABEELRAJAB) March 18, 2015

On a related note, Rajab retweeted a Human Rights Watch tweet in which the human rights organization demanded launching an investigation into the overcrowding at Jaw prison and ensuring that prisoners can contact their relatives.

ينبغي التحقيق في الاكتظاظ في سجن جو في #البحرين وضمان قدرة السجناء على التواصل مع أقاربهم http://t.co/gzZ5BVuEJF @NABEELRAJAB

— هيومن رايتس ووتش (@hrw_ar) March 27, 2015

Rajab also tweeted pictures of a Bahraini young man whom he met, who had just been released from prison, following the events. This tweet was also used by the prosecution to charge Rajab with insulting the Interior Ministry and the prison administration publicly. "I visited a young man who was just released from prison - the pictures will tell you how they were treated #Bahrain."

I visited a young man who was just released from prison - the pictures will tell you how they were treated #Bahrain pic.twitter.com/IHXZXIkyh4

— Nabeel Rajab (@NABEELRAJAB) March 17, 2015

The court deemed these tweets sufficient evidence for the charges raised against Rajab and sentenced him to five years in prison based on those "evidence".

The verdict, which sparked international reactions, left Bahrain leading headlines and international news sites, as in addition to the five-year prison term Rajab was also sentenced to two years in prison for giving television interviews in 2015. Authorities released him provisionally on humanitarian grounds on July 13, 2015, but re-arrested him on June 13, 2016, for criticism in television interviews of the Bahraini authorities' refusal to allow journalists and rights groups into the country amid a widespread campaign launched against dissidents and activists in June (2016), which included stripping the country's top religious leader, Ayatollah Sheikh Isa Qassim of his nationality, and the dissolution of Al-Wefaq, the country's largest opposition political party.

"The trials for the cases were overseen by numerous observers, including representatives from foreign embassies and NGOs," the Bahrain Embassy in London said in its statement.

The UN has deemed Nabeel Rajab a prisoner of conscience, demanding his immediate and unconditional release. The European Union said that the Rajab case has become a symbol of human rights defenders and respect for freedom of expression in Bahrain and beyond, while international condemnations against the ruling as well as explicit calls for releasing Rajab were made by the governments of the United States, Britain, Germany, France, and others.

Arabic Version