Jordanian activist Kamil al-Zoubi faces several charges in detention related to his freedom of expression
Timeline
November 29, 2022: Kamil is released on bail.
November 11, 2022: MENA Rights Group sends an urgent appeal to the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression and the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention.
October 30, 2022: Kamil al-Zoubi is arrested reportedly in reprisal for having advocated for the release of political detainees and for having shared information, disclosed by the activists’ lawyers, about their situation.
October 2021: Al-Zoubi is arrested after the Prime Minister took legal action against him following comments he made on Twitter about a transaction received by the Prime Minister’s wife; he is released 25 days later, after the Prime Minister withdrew his lawsuit.
March 15, 2021: Al-Zoubi is arrested along with 15 other persons in the context of protests that erupted after oxygen ran out in the city’s hospital of al-Salt leading to deaths of COVID-19 patients; he is released on bail 17 days later.
December 23, 2020: Al-Zoubi is questioned by the Anti Cyber-Crimes Unit of the Public Security Directorate and prosecuted on three counts under the Cybercrime law, two of which were later dropped. He has not yet been tried on the third charge.
February 9, 2020: Al-Zoubi is provisionally released pending trial following a hunger strike.
September 1, 2019: His trial before the State Security Court begins.
May 11, 2019: Al-Zoubi is arrested at his home by the General Intelligence Directorate (GID), referred to the State Security Court and charged with “undermining the regime”, “changing the entity of the state”, and “attempting to change the political rule in Jordan”.
September 3, 2018: Al-Zoubi and activist Khaled al-Fakhri Abu Islam are arrested by the GID in Irbid before being charged with “insulting the King”, “undermining the regime” and “defaming an official body and inciting sedition; al-Zoubi is released after 88 days in detention after his one-year prison sentence was reduced on appeal.
January 2015: Al-Zoubi is released and placed under a travel ban.
December 2014: Al-Zoubi is arrested by the GID, charged with “insulting the king and undermining the regime”.