Human rights in the Middle East
The 2004 United Nations Arab Human Development Report[2] (AHDR) claimed that although Arab-Islamic tradition does hold unique importance for ideas of human welfare, History has proven that "they were not sufficiently prevalent in society to foster a culture based on a political contract, and allow for the legitimacy of differences of opinion, dialogue and transfer of power.
"[2] Issues of the validity of democracy in the region and human rights are at the very centre of the challenges facing Middle Eastern society today.
[5] Article 10 of the CDHRI establishes that "It is prohibited to exercise any form of compulsion on man or to exploit his poverty or ignorance in order to convert him to another religion or to atheism.
These are: Algeria, Bahrain, Jordan, Libya, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.
[9] In criminal law determined by Shari'a, most crimes classified as Hudud are punishable by death and are considered dangerous for Islamic society.
“Moreover, some execution methods envisaged in the holy texts, such as flogging, stoning and amputation, violate international conventions that prohibit torture and cruel and inhuman treatments.”[9] The Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR),[15] aimed at abolishing the death penalty, was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1989.
In Lebanon “The constitution declares equality of rights and duties for all citizens without discrimination or preference but establishes a balance of power among the major religious groups.”[20] In Iraq Islam is considered the official religion.
The constitution instructs that Islam be considered the main source of legislation, and declares that no law may be enacted that contradicts the “established provisions of Islam.”[21] The Constitution of Rojava, the de facto autonomous Federation of Northern Syria – Rojava in Syria formed during the Syrian Civil War, guarantees freedom of religion.
Free speech has been largely censored in the Middle East for years, by the means of suppression/removal of online content, spying of dissidents, activists, or journalists, critical of their government, and arbitrary detention.
[22] According to media reports of a massive expose into the use of Israeli spyware technology by authoritarian regimes, the list of governmental clients of the NSO Group’s Pegasus software included a number of Middle East nations such as Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia.
Reportedly, human rights activists, lawyers, and journalists were globally targeted with the phone malware application sold to these governments.
The malicious software was said to have infected the targeted mobile phones with Android or Apple operating systems, to extract personal user data such as photos, messages, emails, call records, and allowed the secret activation of cameras and microphones of the device for real-time spying.
Allegedly, the devices of the people close to the assassinated Saudi journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, including his fiancée, were also targeted via the software.
[24] No country in the region (with the sole exception of the de facto autonomous Rojava federation in Syria) offers specific protections against spousal rape or domestic violence however physical abuse is generally prohibited.
[24] Abused women rarely attempt to file complaints with police and when they do they frequently encounter officers who are “reluctant to get involved in what is perceived as a family matter and who encourage reconciliation rather than legal action.
Child labour, violence against girls, gender gaps within education and socioeconomic conditions had continued to be identified as areas of concern.
Both external and internal conflict, ongoing political instability and the Syrian refugee crisis remain grave dangers for children in Iraq.
[28] Founded in 2005, South Youth Organization (SYO) raises awareness of human rights and works to achieve greater protections for them.
Citing the “gravely concerning allegations” about human rights abuses in Saudi prisons, the panel also asked them to impose Magnitsky-style sanctions on the country's officials.
[35][36] A small island in the Middle East, Bahrain faces frequent condemnation from the human rights organizations over the conditions of its prisons.
[37] In a press briefing released on 30 April 2021, the spokesperson for the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Marta Hurtado, expressed being disturbed by the unnecessary and undue physical force used by Bahraini special forces against prisoners during a peaceful sit-in inside its Jau prison on 17 April 2021.
The act is being considered a violation of human rights by Amnesty International, as even though Kameel was first charged with the said allegations at the age of 14, he did not receive any of the procedural benefits falling under Bahrain’s new juvenile-justice law.
Moreover, as per the statements provided by Kameel’s family, he had been subjected to beating and forced standing for long hours, after being transferred to the Royal Academy of Police post his detention.
[40] The ADHRB, a human rights support organization reported in early August 2021 the worsening condition of a 22-year-old Bahraini national, Mustafa Abdulkarim Khatam, due to being subjected to torture during interrogation inside the prison.
Mustafa’s lawyer was reportedly prevented from attending the interrogations and as of 5 August 2021, he was not provided the urgent medical treatment required to stabilize his worsening condition at the time.
