7 years ago today, citizen journalists Osman Arifmemetov, Ruslan Suleymanov, Remzi Bekirov, & Rustem Sheykhaliev were arrested for reporting on human rights violations in occupied Crimea. #Russia must release them immediately & without conditions. #DefendingFreedoms
“9 years ago today, Ahmed Mansoor was arrested and sentenced to 10 years in prison for defending human rights. Since his arrest, he has been held in solitary confinement and in poor conditions. #UAE must release him immediately & without conditions. #DefendingFreedoms”
12 years ago today, economist and Uyghur rights defender Ilham Tohti was arrested for promoting cultural understanding between Uyghurs & Han Chinese. China must release him immediately & unconditionally.
@amo.house.gov is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
Today is writer and activist Abduljalil Al-Singace’s 64th birthday. He was sentenced to life in prison for protesting discrimination & repression. Bahrain must release him immediately & without conditions. @khanna.house.gov is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
Iran must release her immediately & without conditions. You can learn more about her #DefendingFreedoms case here: humanrightscommission.house.gov/DFP/Countrie...
Today marks Ekpar Asat's 10th birthday in prison. He is a Uyghur entrepreneur and was sentenced to 15 years in solitary confinement. China must grant him communication access & free him immediately without conditions. @coons.senate.gov is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
Zhang Shaojie spends his 60th birthday in prison. He was charged with disrupting public order and fraud for practicing his religion. China must release him immediately and without conditions. SenatorTed Budd is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
6 years ago today, Wang Yi, a human rights attorney and Pastor was sentenced to nine years in prison for “inciting to subvert state power”. China must clarify his status & release him immediately.
Senator Thom Tillis is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
Today, Wang Bingzhang turns 78 in prison. This marks 23 birthdays in detention for his pro-democracy activism. China must release him immediately & without conditions. @schiff.senate.gov is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
11 years ago, Bahraini opposition leader Sheikh Ali Salman was arrested. He is serving a life sentence and has been imprisoned for exercising his right to free assembly. Bahrain must release him immediately and without conditions. #DefendingFreedoms
On Saturday, 123 political prisoners in Belarus including Ales Bialiatski & Maria Kolesnikova were released. This is welcome news, but the fight is not over. We must continue pressing for the freedom of all those unjustly detained. @repcohen.bsky.social is their #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
Jimmy Lai has been found guilty on bogus national security charges. This decision is a travesty of justice & reflects a serious assault on freedom of the press in Hong Kong. He should be released immediately and without conditions. @raskin.house.gov is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
4 years ago, journalist & prominent dissident Pham Doan Trang was sentenced to 9 years in prison for the charge of spreading "anti-government propaganda." Vietnam must release her immediately & without conditions.
@RepRoKhanna is her #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
Today is the 66th birthday of Khalil Maatouk, a Syrian human rights lawyer who defended multiple activists before being disappeared. Syria must clarify his status & release him immediately.
@SenTedBuddNC is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
Today marks 7 years since the arrest of Wang Yi in China for “inciting subversion of state power.” He founded one of the most prominent unregistered churches in the country. China must clarify his status & release him immediately.
@SenThomTillis is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate
37 years ago, Ardeshir Fanaian was born in Semnan prison. He has been held in that same prison for over 5 years on charges related to his #Bahai religious identity. Iran must release him immediately & without conditions.
@janschakowsky is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
Today is the 59th birthday of Tran Huynh Duy Thuc, a dissident blogger conditionally released to house arrest in 2024 following 16 years of imprisonment. Vietnam must lift all restrictions on his release. @lofgren.house.gov is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
Today marks 3 years since Fariba Kamalabadi & Mahvash Sabet were sentenced to 10 years in prison for religious activities. Iran must release them immediately & without conditions. @repbonamici.bsky.social & Rep. Schakowsky are their respective #DefendingFreedoms advocates.
Today, Alaa Abd El-Fattah turns 44 as a free man, following the presidential pardon he received in September. Yet he is still being denied permission to travel to the UK to see his son. Egypt must lift all restrictions on his release. #DefendingFreedoms
13 years ago, Khalil Maatouk, a Syrian human rights lawyer disappeared on his way to work. He has not been seen since 2013. At the time of his disappearance, his health was in poor condition.
Senator Ted Budd is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
10 years ago yesterday, Buzurgmehr Yorov was arrested without just cause after representing political opposition in court. He is serving a 28-year prison sentence. Tajikistan must release him immediately & without conditions. #DefendingFreedoms
Today, Ales Bialiatski celebrates his 63rd birthday in a Belarusian prison. He is serving a 10-year sentence on politically motivated charges for his work on human rights. Belarus must release him immediately & unconditionally.
@repcohen.bsky.social is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
11 years ago today, economist and Uyghur rights defender Ilham Tohti was sentenced to life in prison for promoting cultural understanding between Uyghurs & Han Chinese. China must release him immediately & unconditionally.
@amo.house.gov is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
Today marks 24 years since the arrest of Dawit Isaak in Eritrea for his journalism. He is the world’s longest-imprisoned journalist, held incommunicado without charges. Eritrea must immediately and unconditionally clarify his status and release him. #DefendingFreedoms
Today marks the anniversary of the 2021 arrests of Nariman Celal & Asan Akhtemov. Nariman is now Ukraine’s ambassador to Turkey, but Asan remains imprisoned on politically motivated charges. Russia must release him immediately and unconditionally. #CrimeaTatars #DefendingFreedoms
Osman Arifmemetov turns 40 today. He is serving a 14-year prison sentence on politically motivated terrorism charges for reporting on Russia’s rights violations in occupied Crimea. Russia must release him immediately and unconditionally. #DefendingFreedoms
92-year-old #Bahai leader, Jamaloddin Khanjani, and his daughter Maria were arrested on August 13, 2023 for reasons unknown. Mr. Khanjani was previously imprisoned for his leadership role from 2008-2018. Iran must release them immediately & without conditions. #DefendingFreedoms
Gao Zhisheng is an award-winning human rights lawyer who disappeared in 2017. He is known for his work representing high profile cases related to religious freedom in court.
China must clarify his status & release him immediately & without conditions. #DefendingFreedoms
Today, Belarus opposition leader Mikalai Statkevich turned 69 years old. Imprisoned in 2020 & serving a 14-year sentence, he has not been seen or heard from for over 800 days. He must be released immediately & without conditions.
@repcohen.bsky.social is his #DefendingFreedoms advocate.
July 31 marks three years since #Bahai activists Fariba Kamalabadi & Mahvash Sabet were detained. Both are sentenced to 10 years in prison. Iran must release them immediately & without conditions.
@repbonamici.bsky.social & Rep. Schakowsky are their respective #DefendingFreedoms advocates.
