had their citizenship revoked, or who lost or were granted foreign citizenship without permission. In March, the US administration approved the sale to Bahrain of new F-16 fighter jets and upgrades for older jets, which under the previous US administration had been conditional on the improvement of human rights in Bahrain. International NGOs, including Amnesty International, and journalists critical of Bahrain, were denied access to Bahrain throughout the year. FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION Freedom of expression remained severely restricted throughout the year. The authorities arrested, detained, interrogated and prosecuted human rights defenders, political activists and Shi’a clerics who expressed criticism of government policies, or criticism of Saudi Arabia or the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen. The government announced that it would be illegal to express sympathy with Qatar following the severance of ties in June, and arrested and detained one lawyer on that basis. Human rights defenders and opposition leaders arbitrarily detained in previous years for their peaceful opposition remained held as prisoners of conscience. In May, human rights defender Ebtisam alSaegh was arrested and interrogated in NSA custody, during which she said she was tortured, including by being sexually assaulted. She was arrested again in July and remanded in custody for a further six months pending completion of the investigation. She was released in October without knowing the legal status of the case against her. In July, human rights defender Nabeel Rajab was sentenced to two years in prison for “spreading false information and rumours with the aim of discrediting the state”. The sentence was upheld on appeal in November. The media continued to be restricted and journalists were targeted. The only independent newspaper in Bahrain, alWasat, was temporarily suspended and then shut down after it reported on protests in Amnesty International Report 2017/18 Morocco. In May, journalist Nazeeha Saeed was convicted for working without renewing her press licence, issued by the Information Affairs Authority, and fined 1,000BD (USD2,650). The court of appeal upheld the fine in July. FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION The authorities maintained undue restrictions on freedom of association. Leaders of alWefaq and other opposition parties remained in detention and political activists and members of opposition parties were harassed. Several political activists and members of opposition parties reported that they were threatened, tortured or otherwise ill-treated by NSA agents in May. In February, the dissolution of al-Wefaq was upheld by the Court of Cassation. In March, the Minister of Justice filed a lawsuit against the secular opposition group Waad for violating the Law on Political Associations. In May, the High Administrative Court ordered the dissolution of Waad and the liquidation of its assets. In October the Appeal Court upheld the verdict. Opposition leaders and prisoners of conscience Sheikh Ali Salman and Fadhel Abbas Mahdi Mohamed remained arbitrarily detained. In April, Sheikh Ali Salman’s prison sentence was reduced to four years; in November he was charged with spying for Qatar in 2011, which he denied, and at the end of the year his trial was ongoing. In March, former Secretary General of Waad, Ebrahim Sharif, was charged over a series of posts on Twitter, including an Amnesty International graphic and a tweet criticizing the lack of democracy in Bahrain. FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY Protests remained banned in the capital, Manama, and the authorities used unnecessary and excessive force to disperse protests. Peaceful protesters continued to be arrested and detained on charges of “illegal gathering”. In January, mostly peaceful mass protests took place in 20 villages following the execution of three men. In Duraz, security forces used live ammunition and semi- 85