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October 22, 2013

15-Year Sentence for Qatari Poet Upheld 
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In Qatar, the top court has upheld a 15-year jail sentence for a poet
convicted of incitement against the regime. Mohammed al-Ajami was
arrested in November 2011 for allegedly disparaging members of Qatar's
ruling family in a poem. But activists say the real motivation was his
poem "Tunisian Jasmine," in which he expressed support for the Arab
Spring uprisings, writing, "We are all Tunisia in the face of repressive
elites." Al-Ajami was initially dealt a life term but that was reduced
to 15 years in February. His lawyer said he has been held in solitary
confinement for two years. Al-Ajami's only recourse now is to appeal to
the emir. Click here to see our interview from Qatar with Mohammed
Al-Ajami's lawyer.

 

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