Bahrain Mirror: Journalist Nazeeha Saeed said on Sunday (August 20, 2017) that the execution judge rejected request of lawyer Hameed Al-Mullah to stop execution of ruling that ordered Saeed to pay 1000 BD fine and ordered taking her into custody until the fine is paid.

A court convicted Saeed of illegal work. This ruling was condemned by several competent, media and human rights organizations. It is to note the Saeed is outside Bahrain now.

Saeed is the only journalist to have been charged, but her case is not unique. Last year, the authorities refused to renew the accreditation of at least five local journalists working for international news organizations, including Agence France-Presse (AFP), the Associated Press, France 24 and Reuters.

Bahrain is among the countries in the Middle East with the most journalists in prison, with at least 14 behind bars, including citizen journalists. The regime has been banning opposition and oppressing dissident journalists since 2011. Oppression campaign has increased since 2016 and Al-Wasat newspaper, the only independent newspaper in the country, was shut down.

Bahrain is ranked 164th of 180 countries in the 2017 World Press Freedom Index.

Arabic Version