SMF Alarmed by Bahrain’s Arrests of Shia Preachers and Reciters

The skyline of Manama, the capital of Bahrain. Photo: Zairon, CC BY-SA 4.0

The Shia Muslim Foundation (SMF) is deeply alarmed by reports that Bahraini authorities are arresting Shia preachers, reciters and mourning organizers in connection with the annual Fatimiyya commemorations. These observances mark the martyrdom of Lady Fatima al-Zahra, the daughter of the Prophet Muhammad, who Shia Muslims believe died from her injuries and as a martyr. According to reports SMF has received directly, at least six men have been detained in recent weeks. SMF is monitoring the situation closely.

“These reports are deeply troubling to Shia communities around the world. We urge Bahrain to say where these men are held, to give them access to lawyers and their families, and to release anyone held solely for their faith.” — Rahat Husain, Executive Director of the Shia Muslim Foundation

What SMF has been told

According to reports SMF has received, three preachers and reciters were arrested earlier this month, and on Oct. 30 a further reciter and two leaders of a hussainiya’s mourning committee (a hussainiya is a Shia community hall) were reported detained. Some detentions reportedly followed online campaigns targeting religious content. SMF is withholding the names of those detained out of concern for their safety and that of their families.

SMF has not independently verified each detention. As of publication, SMF is not aware of any public statement from Bahrain’s authorities explaining the reasons for these arrests or any charges. Details may change as more information comes in, and SMF will update this article as verified information becomes available.

Part of a pattern documented by rights groups

These arrests come against a backdrop that independent human rights organizations have been documenting for months. A joint report by SALAM for Democracy and Human Rights (SALAM DHR) and the Bahrain Forum for Human Rights, “Criminalising a Religious Doctrine and Rituals,” was launched at a seminar on Oct. 12. It documents the arrest of 64 Shia religious scholars in Bahrain between March and August 2026, including 44 on a single day, May 9. It also records about 150 arrests linked to the Ashura season, involving scholars, preachers, reciters and administrators of ma’tams (Shia religious assembly halls), and the cancellation of 103 processions or ma’tams.

The report says detainees were subjected to torture, ill-treatment and coerced confessions, and that fair-trial rights were restricted. It also documents hate speech and sectarian incitement against Shia religious figures. The two groups call on Bahrain to release anyone arbitrarily detained, to investigate the torture allegations, and to invite UN human rights experts to visit.

Other organizations have raised similar alarms. In an Aug. 3 joint statement, Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain (ADHRB) and five other groups said more than fifty Shia clerics, preachers, reciters and religious figures had been arrested or prosecuted, and that Ashura gatherings had been restricted. On Oct. 16, Human Rights Watch, the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD) and other groups urged an end to the mass prosecution of Shia clerics. Their letter says 69 defendants face a mass trial, 56 of them in custody, including 46 clerics, and that at least 37 clerics were arrested on May 9. Counts differ among organizations.

What SMF is calling for

Release anyone held for their faith. Anyone detained solely for leading, reciting at or organizing religious commemorations should be released immediately and unconditionally.

Due process and humane treatment. Those in custody must be told why they are held, be able to see a lawyer and their families, and be protected from torture and ill-treatment.

Respect for the right to worship. Bahrain is bound by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which protects freedom of religion or belief. Shia Muslims must be free to mourn Lady Fatima al-Zahra without fear of arrest.

International attention. SMF urges that UN experts on freedom of religion or belief be invited to Bahrain, as the rights groups above have asked, and urges governments with ties to Bahrain, including the United States, to raise these cases publicly.

SMF is monitoring

Freedom of religion is a universal right, and no one should be jailed for reciting, preaching or mourning. SMF has received direct reports of these arrests and will keep monitoring the situation, and will share updates as verified information becomes available.

Sources: SALAM DHR and Bahrain Forum for Human Rights report (launched Oct. 12, 2026); ADHRB joint statement (Aug. 3, 2026); Human Rights Watch and BIRD joint letter (Oct. 16, 2026). Details of the recent arrests are based on reports received by SMF.

Shia Muslim Foundation Supports Congressional Call for Answers on Reported Civilian Deaths in Iran

The U.S. Capitol. Photo: Carol M. Highsmith, Library of Congress

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 30, 2026

Media contact: Rahat Husain, Executive Director, Shia Muslim Foundation

rahat@shiamuslimfoundation.com | shiamuslimfoundation.com

SMF backs Rep. Sarah Elfreth and 73 House colleagues in urging the Defense Department to account for civilian harm and to protect civilian life

SILVER SPRING, Md., Oct. 30, 2026 — The Shia Muslim Foundation (SMF) today expressed its support for a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, co-signed by Rep. Sarah Elfreth (D-Md., 3rd District), that asks the Department of Defense for a full public accounting of reported civilian deaths from U.S. military operations in Iran and for steps to prevent further civilian harm.

The letter, dated Oct. 8, 2026, was led by Reps. Yassamin Ansari (Ariz.), Sara Jacobs (Calif.) and Jason Crow (Colo.) and signed by 74 members of the U.S. House of Representatives, including Rep. Elfreth, who serves on the House Armed Services Committee. It was copied to Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command.

The letter raises “grave concern” about reports of civilian casualties at a wedding in the town of Kuhestak, Iran, on Sept. 1, 2026. According to the letter, five civilians were killed, including a 4-year-old boy and a 16-year-old boy, and dozens were injured. The letter notes that the Department “has not publicly acknowledged responsibility for this incident,” while citing a Washington Post report that there is a “high likelihood” the United States was responsible. The Defense Department has said it is looking into the reports and that the U.S. military “never targets civilians,” according to Stars and Stripes.

The lawmakers also point to a Feb. 28 strike on the Shajareh Tayyebeh Elementary School in Minab, Iran, that the letter says killed a reported 175 civilians, including 120 children. They write that more than six months later the Department “has still not publicly acknowledged responsibility for the strike nor released the findings of its investigation.”

“We are deeply alarmed by the continued pattern of civilian casualties resulting from U.S. operations in the war in Iran, and the apparent lack of action and accountability from the Department,” the lawmakers wrote. They added: “Acknowledging such incidents, accepting responsibility, and learning from them makes our forces stronger, more effective, and an example to the world.”

The letter asks the Department to answer six sets of questions by Oct. 26, 2026. They include whether U.S. forces carried out the Kuhestak strike; whether an independent investigation has been opened and when it will finish; when Congress and the public will receive the findings of the Minab investigation; and what concrete steps the Department has taken to prevent civilian harm in targeting. The letter also says that staffing for the Department’s civilian harm mitigation and response programs has reportedly been sharply reduced.

“Every civilian life matters, whoever and wherever they are. The Shia Muslim Foundation supports the call for a full, public accounting of reported civilian deaths, including the deaths of children, and for stronger measures to keep families out of harm’s way. Transparency and accountability honor those who were lost and protect the living,” said Rahat Husain, executive director of the Shia Muslim Foundation.

SMF has met with Rep. Elfreth to discuss mosque safety and other concerns of Maryland’s Muslim communities, and values her continued engagement.

SMF’s support is focused on one principle: the protection of civilian life and the right of families, in any country, to be safe from harm. SMF encourages the Department of Defense to respond fully to Congress and to make the findings of its civilian-harm investigations public.

SMF is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization. It does not endorse candidates or political parties.

Sources: Letter to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Oct. 8, 2026 (crow.house.gov); Rep. Yassamin Ansari press release (ansari.house.gov); Stars and Stripes, Sept. 4, 2026.

About the Shia Muslim Foundation

The Shia Muslim Foundation (SMF) is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2020 and headquartered in Maryland. Its mission is to advance the civic rights of American Shia Muslims, provide direct community support, and serve as a credible and representative voice for the Shia Muslim community in engagement with government at all levels. Learn more at shiamuslimfoundation.com.

Media contact

Rahat Husain, Executive Director

Shia Muslim Foundation

rahat@shiamuslimfoundation.com

shiamuslimfoundation.com

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SMFNews: Activists Charged Over Poll Stunt in ‘Muslim’ Disguise

A “Vote Here” sign outside a polling place in Minneapolis. Photo: Lorie Shaull, CC BY-SA 2.0

MINNEAPOLIS — Prosecutors in Hennepin County, Minnesota, on Oct. 28 charged two activists with felonies over a video stunt in which they visited Minneapolis polling places during the state’s Aug. 11 primary wearing burqas and using accents, and gave election judges the names of real registered voters, MPR News and Reuters reported.

James O’Keefe, 42, and Cameron “Cam” Higby, 26, each face two felony counts: identity theft and unlawful voting by misrepresenting their identity while applying for a ballot, according to the criminal complaint and the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office. Each count carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and/or a $10,000 fine. An initial court appearance has been set for Nov. 16. Muslim civil rights advocates, who had called for an investigation in August, said the stunt relied on anti-Muslim stereotypes.

What prosecutors say happened

According to the complaint, the two men and others working with them entered several Minneapolis polling places with hidden cameras “while donning costumes and modifying their voices to obscure their identities,” and later posted the videos online. Videos posted by O’Keefe’s operation show them wearing burqas outside precincts, MPR News reported, and Reuters reported that Higby posed as a woman in a face-concealing burqa.

Prosecutors say the men gave election judges the names and addresses of registered voters who had not given permission to use their identities, then asked questions about Minnesota’s vouching process before leaving. County Attorney Mary Moriarty said the names used included some residents who had died and at least one person who had voted, according to MPR News. Neither man signed the oath required to vouch for another voter, MPR News reported.

“I think it’s pretty clear they did not intend to vote. That’s not the question here,” Moriarty said as she announced the charges, according to MPR News. Moriarty also told reporters that being performative or offensive is not against the law.

— Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty, to reporters, October 28, 2026

MPR News reported that state court records show the specific election charges filed in the case have been used only once since 2021.

Muslim advocates: stereotypes used as props

Days after the videos appeared in August, the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN) called for a criminal investigation. “Using fake Muslim identities, accents and religious stereotypes as part of a political stunt is not a harmless prank or political stunt,” CAIR-MN Executive Director Jaylani Hussein said at the time. “Falsely impersonating a real voter, and using anti-Muslim stereotypes to do it, is not an acceptable substitute for legitimate civic oversight.”

After the charges were announced, the group welcomed the decision as a necessary step toward accountability.

— Jaylani Hussein, Executive Director, CAIR-Minnesota, October 28, 2026

What the defendants say

In an August press release, O’Keefe’s group, which calls itself the “Justice League,” said the people in the video “did not cast ballots” and that the effort “was intended to test the limits of Minnesota’s vouching law and document how election workers apply it on Election Day,” MPR News reported. After the charges were filed, Higby denied breaking any state laws and said on social media that Minnesota officials wanted to imprison him “for exposing election vulnerabilities in their state.” O’Keefe is known for making undercover videos, MPR News reported.

How vouching works

Minnesota allows people who are not yet registered to register at the polls on Election Day. One way to prove residence is vouching: a voter already registered in the precinct goes with the new voter and signs an oath confirming that person’s address. A registered voter can vouch for up to eight people, MPR News reported.

Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon has said the poll workers did exactly what they were supposed to do to protect the integrity of the election. “Any attempt to disrupt or deceive our election workers will not be tolerated,” Simon said after the charges were announced. “We are grateful to our law enforcement partners for holding these individuals to account.”

The Hennepin County Government Center in downtown Minneapolis. Photo: Tony Webster, CC BY 2.0

Why it matters

The charges come days before the Nov. 3 midterm elections, as Muslim advocacy groups warn about intimidation at the polls. The Muslim Public Affairs Council has published a report and voter resources on election security, voter intimidation and the safety of American Muslim communities, and Muslim voters in Lewiston, Maine, have complained that they were filmed and followed while voting early.

For Muslim voters, the case draws a line that prosecutors spelled out: an offensive costume alone is not a crime, but using another voter’s identity at the polls is being charged as a felony. The allegations have not been proven in court, and Minnesota election officials say poll workers did what they were supposed to do.

— Rahat Husain, executive director, Shia Muslim Foundation

Sources: Hennepin County Attorney’s Office (Oct. 28, 2026); criminal complaint, State of Minnesota v. O’Keefe; MPR News (Oct. 28, 2026); Reuters via Minnesota Lawyer (Oct. 28, 2026); The Guardian (Oct. 28, 2026); KSTP (Oct. 28, 2026); CAIR-MN (Oct. 28, 2026); CAIR-MN (Aug. 18, 2026); Muslim Public Affairs Council.