Human Rights Watch

The summit’s website conveniently makes no mention of the UAE’s sustained assault on freedom of expression since 2011.

In a joint statement 32 human rights and free speech NGOs are demanding the release of Mauritanian blogger Mohamed Cheikh Ould Mohamed who is being held incommunicado even thought he was supposed to have been freed a year ago.

Tunisian authorities are confiscating and searching the phones of men they suspect of being gay and pressuring them to take anal tests and to confess to homosexual activity.

“Iranian government officials repeatedly advertise to the world that the repeated protests in the country signal that there are real freedoms in Iran, while these same protesters languish in prison for years,” said HRW.

A 16-year-old boy who was charged with breaking Russia’s ‘gay propaganda’ law after he posted semi-nude images on social media has had the case against him dismissed.

Draconian cyber laws and surveillance of social media are some of the tools used by the government of Bangladesh to target critics ahead of elections scheduled for January 2019.

The Fatah-led Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and Hamas authorities in Gaza routinely arrest and torture peaceful critics and opponents.

The investigation should determine the circumstances surrounding Saudi Arabia’s role in the enforced disappearance and possible killing of Khashoggi, urge the Committee to Protect Journalists, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, and Reporters Without Borders.