Ala'a Shehabi

Ala'a Shehabi, sometimes referred to as Ala'a al-Shehabi (born 1980/1981), is a British-born Bahraini journalist and democracy-rights activist.[1]

Early life and education

Shehabi was raised in London by her father, political exile Saeed al-Shehabi, leader of the Bahrain Freedom Movement.[2][3][4]

Shehabi received a PhD from Imperial College London.[5]

Career and activism

In 2009, Shehabi moved to Bahrain, where she worked as a lecturer in economics at a private Bahraini university.[2]

Shehabi took part in the 2011 Bahraini Uprising, helping to run a media centre, covering the events and attending protests at Pearl Roundabout.[2][5][6][4] Shortly afterward, her husband was arrested for political reasons, and she was dismissed from her job, being told she was "a risk" to the university. Without a job, she began working as a political activist.[7] She founded Bahrain Watch, which advocates for press freedom in the country.[7][8]

In April 2012, Shehabi was arrested during the Formula One Grand Prix in Bahrain, although she was later released.[5] She has reported that following her release, she was sent multiple emails and messages with spyware, which she presumed were sent by the Bahraini government.[5]

In 2015 she was an editor, along with Marc Owen Jones, on Bahrain's Uprising: Resistance and Repression in the Gulf, an anthology about Bahraini resistance in the early 2010s.[9]

Shehabi has published research through the RAND Corporation on healthcare in the United Kingdom.[10] Shehabi has written for Al Jazeera[11] and The Guardian.[12]

Shehabi is a lecturer in Middle Eastern Politics at University College London.[6][13]

Personal life

Shehabi married her husband, Ghazi Farhan, a businessman, after she moved to Bahrain in 2009.[2] Farhan was arrested by Bahraini security forces in April 2011 and sentenced to three years in prison, although he was released after ten months.[1][2][4][7] Outside groups such as Human Rights Watch have speculated his arrest was due to Shehabi's political activities.[4]

Shehabi and her husband have one son, Nasser.[1][2]

References
  1. "My husband was tortured for my beliefs". Marie Claire UK. 2012-12-03. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
  2. "Sisters under the scarf: Fighting on the front line". Financial Times. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
  3. Beaugrand, Claire (2016). "Activism and Nationalism Among the Third Bahraini Wave of Exile". Mashriq & Mahjar: Journal of Middle East and North African Migration Studies. 3 (2): 102 – via Project MUSE.
  4. Sanei, Faraz (2011-08-29). "Challenging Manama's Narrative". Human Rights Watch. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
  5. Mezzofiore, Gianluca (2014-05-13). "British-Bahraini Activist Hails 'Damning' Verdict on HMRC over Spyware Export". International Business Times UK. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
  6. "Ten years after uprising, some Bahrainis still counting the cost". Reuters. 2021-02-16. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
  7. Mostegel, Iris (May 3, 2014). "The Bahraini activist Ala'a Shehabi: David versus goliath". Qantara.de. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
  8. "The Bahraini Activist Ala'a Shehabi: "We Are Being Spied On"". Qantara.de. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
  9. "New Texts Out Now: Ala'a Shehabi and Marc Owen Jones, Bahrain's Uprising: Resistance and Repression in the Gulf". Jadaliyya - جدلية. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
  10. "Ala'a Shehabi". RAND Corporation.
  11. "Alaa Shehabi". Al Jazeera News. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
  12. "Ala'a Shehabi". The Guardian. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
  13. "Dr Ala'a Shehabi". UCL European & International Social & Political Studies. 2022-09-26. Retrieved 2023-09-10.
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