Region: Bahrain

Front Line Defenders and Access Now’s new report, “Unsafe anywhere: women human rights defenders speak out about Pegasus attacks,” unpacks the first-hand experiences of women navigating an increasingly hostile and dangerous environment.

Access Now and Front Line Defenders reveal the hacking of two women human rights defenders from Bahrain and Jordan using Pegasus spyware.

“From Pearl to Pegasus: Bahraini Government Hacks Activists with NSO Group Zero-Click iPhone Exploits” explores how activists were targeted in Bahrain.

At the outbreak of the COVID-19 global pandemic, a number of countries in the MENA region turned to technology to help track and prevent the spread of the virus, using apps, drones, and even robots to monitor the movement of citizens under quarantine.

Today, Access Now announces its selection of Bahraini activist and digital security consultant Mohammed Al-Maskati as a recipient of this year’s Human Rights Heroes Award.

It’s not just Egypt. Throughout the Middle East and North Africa, laws purportedly aimed at increasing national security are putting human rights at risk.

Across the region, authorities are leveraging accusations of “fake news” and imposing harsh prison sentences — in some cases, 10 years — based on what an advocate has posted online.

Shutdowns are like avalanches that shear through the foundation for economic growth, wrecking lives and businesses along the way.