Reliable reports confirmed that human rights lawyer Rashid Al-Marri has been released, while local sources reported that security forces arrested a group of 90 juveniles and held them incommunicado for several days.

On 17 December 2024, authorities released human rights lawyer Rashid bin Ali Abu Shraydeh Al-Marri, who was serving a life sentence in prison.

At a hearing on 10 May 2022, the Second Circuit Criminal Court issued a life sentence against lawyer Dr. Hazzaa bin Ali Abu Shraydeh Al-Marri, who was arrested on 10 August 2021, and his brother, lawyer Rashid bin Ali Abu Shraydeh Al-Marri, who was arrested the next day.

The ruling is linked to their active participation in peaceful protests that culminated on 09 August 2021. It was a busy day in contemporary Qatari history, when protesters from the Al-Murra tribe gathered peacefully to demand the authorities overturn the Shura Council elections law, guarantee the right to full citizenship, respect freedom of expression, and promote social justice among citizens, and after lawyer Rashid Al-Marri publicly criticised Al Jazeera, which is fully funded by the Qatari government.

For more information on his case, see here.

In other news, the Qatari Ministry of Interior confirmed on 19 December 2024, in a statement published on X that security forces had arrested 65 individuals and 90 minors of different nationalities due to the way they celebrated Qatar National Day, which falls on 18 December 2024.

One of their guardians confirmed that the security forces had detained the minors incommunicado for seven to eight days before they were released after being forced to sign pledges. Local reports confirmed that the juveniles were insulted by the police forces. Despite the request by the Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GCHR) to the Qatari government officials to provide clarifications about what happened to the juveniles, they remained silent as is their custom when questioned about their human rights violations.

On 03 January 2025, citizen Umm Nasser posted a video on her TikTok account in which she stated that after she filed a complaint with the Public Prosecution Office against a group of people, she was surprised that they exploited their influence in this office to issue an arrest warrant against her without her having committed any violation other than filing this complaint. She wondered why they imprison the free and where are the human rights, stressing that she will not remain silent and will demand her rights, and asked for solidarity with her in the event that she does not answer calls, which means that she must have been arrested by the authorities.

While GCHR welcomes the release of human rights lawyer Rashid Al-Marri, it calls on the authorities to release his brother, human rights lawyer Dr. Hazzaa bin Ali Abu Shraydeh Al-Marri, and to quash the unjust sentence against him, which violates his civil and human rights, including the right to express opinions online and offline, as well as the right to peaceful assembly.

The government in Qatar must respect the fundamental rights of citizens, including freedom of expression online and offline and freedom of association.

The Public Prosecutor of Qatar must ensure the integrity of the legal proceedings taken by his office and not allow those with influence or personal connections to obstruct the achievement of justice for all citizens without exception.