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Living Archive
Defenders.
An open record of human rights defenders across the Middle East and North Africa. Every entry is a case file — dated, sourced, and kept current.
173
Records on
the open archive
87
Currently held
detained · sentenced · on trial
57
In exile or under
transnational repression
11
In memoriam
killed for their work
The Record
Currently held
HM-XX-2026-003
Imprisoned
Sheikh Mohammed Al-Siddiq
Scholar, former lecturer, co-founder of the Eslah society. Signed a 2011 petition for democratic reform. Arrested 2012, sentenced in the UAE94 mass…
Day 5,171 · since 2012-04-09
HM-SA-2022-001
Imprisoned
Mohammed Al-Ghamdi
Mohammed Nasser Al-Ghamdi is a teacher from Abha, Saudi Arabia, whose brother is a dissident scholar in UK exile. Arrested in 2022…
Day 1,456 · since 2022-06-11
HM-XX-2026-004
Imprisoned
Dr. Hadef Al-Owais
Dr. Hadef Al-Owais taught law at UAE University and sat on the International Court of Arbitration. He has been imprisoned since 2012…
Day 5,016 · since 2012-09-11
HM-XX-2026-005
Imprisoned
Abdulsalam Al-Marzooqi
A former Dubai court official held since 2012 for signing a pro-democracy petition. After serving 10 years, authorities extended his detention indefinitely,…
Hunger strike
Day 5,065 · since 2012-07-24
HM-EG-2021-001
Detained
Tawfiq Ghanem
Tawfiq Ghanem, 71, is an Egyptian journalist who has spent decades covering government accountability. He was arrested in May 2021 and has…
Day 1,842 · since 2021-05-21
HM-BH-2014-001
Sentenced
Mohammed Ramadan
Mohammed Ramadan was sentenced to death in Bahrain in connection with a 2014 bombing in Al-Dair. His case has raised serious concerns…
Day 4,508 · since 2014-02-01
HM-BH-2025-002
Sentenced
Ebrahim Sharif
Ebrahim Sharif is a senior member of Bahrain's National Democratic Action Society. Since 2011 he has been arrested at least ten times…
Day 206 · since 2025-11-12
HM-EG-2026-003
Sentenced
Hoda Abdel-Moneim
Hoda Abdel-Moneim is a retired Egyptian human rights lawyer, mother, and former member of the National Council for Human Rights. Arrested in…
Medical urgency
Day 2,774 · since 2018-11-01
HM-EG-2026-004
On trial
Mohamed Adel
Mohamed Adel, former spokesperson for the April 6 Youth Movement, has been detained since June 2018. Authorities have denied him surgery for…
Medical urgency
Day 2,927 · since 2018-06-01
HM-JO-2026-001
On trial
Ayman Hussein Al-Atoum
Ayman Hussein Al-Atoum was arrested in Jordan on 9 January 2026 and remains detained. Full details of his work, the charges, and…
Day 148 · since 2026-01-09
HM-MA-2025-001
Sentenced
Ibtissame (Betty) Lachgar
Ibtissame Lachgar is a clinical psychologist, feminist, and co-founder of MALI, an organization defending individual freedoms. She was arrested after posting a…
Medical urgency
Day 300 · since 2025-08-10
HM-DZ-2025-002
Sentenced
Mohamed Tadjadit
Known as the "poet of the Hirak," Mohamed Tadjadit has been arrested six times since 2019. In January 2025, aged 32, he…
Day 506 · since 2025-01-16