Bahrain
Not Free
30
100
| A Obstacles to Access | 16 25 |
| B Limits on Content | 6 35 |
| C Violations of User Rights | 8 40 |
Last Year's Score & Status
28
100
Not Free
Scores are based on a scale of 0 (least free) to 100 (most free).
See the methodology and report acknowledgements.
Internet freedom improved slightly in Bahrain, though the environment for online rights remained heavily repressive overall. While social media and messaging applications were still the main sources of news, the ongoing persecution of users for their peaceful expression fostered a culture of self-censorship. Authorities often blocked websites, particularly those that criticized the government, and surveilled activists, journalists, and human rights defenders.
- In October 2024, dozens of social media users were summoned by authorities and forced to delete posts that condemned the Israeli military’s recent killing of Hassan Nasrallah, leader of the Lebanese Shiite political and militant group Hezbollah (B2).1
- Amendments to the Press, Printing, and Publishing Law were approved by Bahrain’s House of Representatives in May 2025. The amendments included new licensing requirements that would increase the administrative burden for both domestic and foreign online media platforms and could allow authorities to censor or close critical outlets (B3, B6, and C2).2
- While fewer people have received lengthy prison sentences for their online content in recent years, dozens of social media users were summoned, arrested, or briefly detained during the coverage period for expressing solidarity with Lebanese and Palestinians facing Israeli military campaigns (C3).3
- 1Nazeeha Saeed, “Bahrain: Sympathy for Palestine allowed and Lebanon forbidden,” Amwaj Media, November 24, 2024, https://amwaj.media/en/article/bahrain-sympathy-for-palestine-allowed-a…; @bqassab, “خرجتُ من الجرائم الإلكترونية بعد استدعاء قصير، السبب هو (ريبوست) على منصة اكس، يحوي مقطعاً من خطاب للسيد نصر الله حول معركته مع الكيان المحتل، تم إخطاري أن ذكر اسمه أو الترحم عليه أو إظهار شخصيته المقاومة التي واجهت إسرائيل وحررت الجنوب، يعتبر وفق تعريف القانون البحريني تمجيدا للإرهاب. [I was released from the Cyber Crimes Department after a short summons. The reason was a repost on the X platform, which contained a clip from a speech by Sayyed Nasrallah about his battle with the occupying entity. I was informed that mentioning his name, praying for mercy for him, or portraying his resistance figure who confronted Israel and liberated the south, is considered, according to the definition of Bahraini law, glorifying terrorism.],” X, October 8, 2024, https://x.com/bqassab/status/1843740618767393116.
- 2“البلاد تنشر تعديلات على مشروع قانون الصحافة الجديد [Al Bilad publishes amendments to the new draft press law],” Al Bilad Press, May 7, 2025, https://www.albiladpress.com/news/2025/6049/bahrain/914791.html; Access Now, “Bahrain: halt repressive amendments to the press law,” July 1, 2025, https://www.accessnow.org/press-release/bahrain-halt-repressive-amendme…; Committee to Protect Journalists,” CPJ, 8 others urge Bahrain to halt repressive amendments to press law,” June 26, 2025, https://cpj.org/2025/06/cpj-8-others-urge-bahrain-to-halt-repressive-am…; Shura Council, “تشريعية الشورى تبحث السلامة الدستورية والقانونية لاقتراحين بقانون بشأن تنظيم المهن الفنية والطاقة المتجددة وحساب التأمين ضد التعطل [Shura Legislative Committee Discusses Constitutional and Legal Validity of Two Law Proposals on “Regulation of Technical Professionals,” “Renewable Energy,” and “Unemployment Insurance Account”],” June 25, 2025, https://shura.bh/en/news/15878.
- 3Prisoners Affairs Authority Bahrain, “78 حالة اعتقال في البحرين خلال شهر اكتوبر.. جميعهم بتهمة التضامن مع الشعبين اللبناني والفلسطيني أو تمجيد السيد حسن نصر الله [eighty seven arrests were made in Bahrain during October, all on charges of expressing solidarity with the Lebanese and Palestinian people or glorifying Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah],” November 2, 2024, https://paabh.net/38887/.
Bahrain’s Sunni-led monarchy dominates state institutions, and elections for the lower house of parliament are neither competitive nor inclusive. Since violently crushing a popular prodemocracy protest movement in 2011, the authorities have systematically eliminated a broad range of political rights and civil liberties, dismantled the political opposition, and cracked down on persistent dissent concentrated among the Shiite population.
This report has been abridged for Freedom on the Net 2025 due to ongoing budget constraints. Please consider making a donation to support future editions of this vital resource.
For additional background information, see last year’s full report.
A1
1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
| Do infrastructural limitations restrict access to the internet or the speed and quality of internet connections? | 6.006 6.006 |
A2
1.00-3.00 pts0-3 pts
| Is access to the internet prohibitively expensive or beyond the reach of certain segments of the population for geographical, social, or other reasons? | 2.002 3.003 |
A3
1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
| Does the government exercise technical or legal control over internet infrastructure for the purposes of restricting connectivity? | 4.004 6.006 |
A4
1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
| Are there legal, regulatory, or economic obstacles that restrict the diversity of service providers? | 3.003 6.006 |
A5
1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
| Do national regulatory bodies that oversee service providers and digital technology fail to operate in a free, fair, and independent manner? | 1.001 4.004 |
Score Change: The score improved from 0 to 1 because the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority has taken steps in recent years to promote internet access and affordability and has demonstrated increased transparency in its decision-making processes.1
- 1“Bahrain: TRA approves wholesale price changes to boost fibre broadband speeds,” Zawya, January 10, 2025, https://www.zawya.com/en/economy/gcc/bahrain-tra-approves-wholesale-pri…; Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, “TRA Approves Wholesale Price Changes to Boost Fibre Broadband Speeds in Bahrain,” January 8, 2025, https://www.tra.org.bh/en/article/tra-approves-wholesale-price-changes-…; Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, “Consultation Extension,” September 1, 2024, https://www.tra.org.bh/en/article/consultation-extension.
B1
1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
| Does the state block or filter, or compel service providers to block or filter, internet content, particularly material that is protected by international human rights standards? | 1.001 6.006 |
B2
1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
| Do state or nonstate actors employ legal, administrative, or other means to force publishers, content hosts, or digital platforms to delete content, particularly material that is protected by international human rights standards? | 0.000 4.004 |
B3
1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
| Do restrictions on the internet and digital content lack transparency, proportionality to the stated aims, or an independent appeals process? | 0.000 4.004 |
B4
1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
| Do online journalists, commentators, and ordinary users practice self-censorship? | 0.000 4.004 |
B5
1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
| Are online sources of information controlled or manipulated by the government or other powerful actors to advance a particular political interest? | 0.000 4.004 |
B6
1.00-3.00 pts0-3 pts
| Are there economic or regulatory constraints that negatively affect users’ ability to publish content online? | 1.001 3.003 |
B7
1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
| Does the online information landscape lack diversity and reliability? | 1.001 4.004 |
B8
1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
| Do conditions impede users’ ability to mobilize, form communities, and campaign, particularly on political and social issues? | 3.003 6.006 |
C1
1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
| Do the constitution or other laws fail to protect rights such as freedom of expression, access to information, and press freedom, including on the internet, and are they enforced by a judiciary that lacks independence? | 0.000 6.006 |
C2
1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
| Are there laws that assign criminal penalties or civil liability for online activities, particularly those that are protected under international human rights standards? | 0.000 4.004 |
C3
1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
| Are individuals penalized for online activities, particularly those that are protected under international human rights standards? | 2.002 6.006 |
C4
1.00-4.00 pts0-4 pts
| Does the government place restrictions on anonymous communication or encryption? | 1.001 4.004 |
C5
1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
| Does state surveillance of internet activities infringe on users’ right to privacy? | 1.001 6.006 |
C6
1.00-6.00 pts0-6 pts
| Does monitoring and collection of user data by service providers and other technology companies infringe on users’ right to privacy? | 0.000 6.006 |
C7
1.00-5.00 pts0-5 pts
| Are individuals subject to extralegal intimidation or physical violence by state authorities or any other actor in relation to their online activities? | 2.002 5.005 |
C8
1.00-3.00 pts0-3 pts
| Are websites, governmental and private entities, service providers, or individual users subject to widespread hacking and other forms of cyberattack? | 2.002 3.003 |
Score Change: The score improved from 1 to 2 because there have been fewer reports of cyberattacks against bloggers, activists, and opposition websites in recent years.
Country Facts
-
Population
1,472,000 -
Global Freedom Score
12 100 not free -
Internet Freedom Score
30 100 not free -
Freedom in the World Status
Not Free -
Networks Restricted
No -
Websites Blocked
Yes -
Pro-government Commentators
No -
Users Arrested
Yes
