Bahrain appeals court upholds Nabeel Rajab's 5-year prison sentence

A Bahrain appeals court on Tuesday upheld a five-year prison sentence for human rights activist Nabeel Rajab amid the island kingdom's clampdown on all dissent, AP reports. The verdict has been widely criticized internationally. Rajab did not attend the hearing before the Bahrain High Criminal Court of Appeal over his case involving tweets that criticized the Saudi Arabia-led war in Yemen and alleged abuses in Bahraini prisons. He is already serving a two-year prison sentence for television interviews he gave that included criticism of Bahrain. Rajab can still appeal to Bahrain’s Court of Cassation, the highest judicial body, or possibly be pardoned by King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, which happened in a previous case in 2015 when the activist faced health problems.