Skip to the record
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
Filtered cases
HM-EG-2026-047
In exile
Alaa Abdel Fattah
Alaa Abdel Fattah, a blogger and digital rights defender, was arrested in 2019 while complying with probation conditions. He has been held…
Hunger strike
Open case file
HM-SA-2026-002
Released
Raif Badawi
Raif Badawi, a Saudi blogger and co-founder of Free Saudi Liberals, served ten years in prison for posts about free speech and…
Hunger strike
Open case file
HM-EG-2026-022
Sentenced
Mohamed Ibrahim
Mohamed Ibrahim runs Oxygen Egypt, a blog and YouTube channel covering rights and politics. Arrested in September 2019 after reporting to police,…
Open case file
HM-TN-2026-009
Sentenced
Meriem Bribri
Meriem Bribri was sentenced to four months in prison and fined for sharing a video of police violence on Facebook. A telecommunications…
Open case file
HM-MA-2026-003
Released
Ismail Lghazaoui
Agricultural engineer and pro-Palestine advocate imprisoned for two months for social-media posts supporting boycotts of companies linked to Israel. Released February 2025…
Open case file
HM-YE-2026-001
Under restriction
Abdul Majid Sabra
Abdul Majid Sabra is a lawyer who has defended journalists, political activists, and others detained for exercising fundamental rights in Yemen. He…
Hunger strike
Open case file
HM-MA-2026-001
Sentenced
Saida El Alami
Saida El Alami uses social media to denounce corruption and restrictions on free speech in Morocco. Arrested in July 2025, she was…
Open case file
HM-BH-2025-001
Released
Ali Al Hajee
Ali Al Hajee was arrested in March 2025 after posting criticism of Formula 1 testing in Bahrain on social media. He was…
Arrested 2025
HM-SA-2020-001
Released
Ziad Al-Sufyani
Ziad Al-Sufyani is a podiatrist who founded a university reading club and edited Wikipedia pages on women's rights. He was arrested during…
Arrested 2020