In this Dec. 17, 2012 photo, Bahraini human rights activist Yousef al-Muhafedha, center, speaks to riot police during a protest in Manama, Bahrain. If the Arab Spring uprisings represented the coming of age for social media activism in the Middle East, then the Gulf Arab rulers who have ridden out the upheavals appear to be mounting their own counter revolution. Dozens of bloggers, online activists and even a poet in Qatar have been detained or prosecuted across the Western-allied Gulf in recent months as part of widening crackdowns on perceived cyber-dissent. The escalating pressures have brought widespread denunciations from free-speech groups and others, but also could become an increasing point of friction with the U.S. and other Western backers in the Gulf. (AP Photo/Hasan Jamali)
Lawyer: Qatar poet appeals life sentence
Published: 11:24:55 AM, Sun 27 January 2013 UTC
DOHA, Qatar (AP) — A defense attorney says a Qatar court will decide next month on the appeal of a poet given a life sentence for a verse that allegedly opposed the Gulf emirate's ruling system.
Muhammad ibn al-Dheeb al-Ajami's case is seen as a test of how far Gulf Arab states will push a crackdown on Internet posts they consider politically threatening. They face mounting international criticism.
Najeeb al-Nauimi argues his client had no intention of challenging Qatar's emir. During a hearing Sunday, al-Ajami met directly with the presiding magistrate. A verdict is expected Feb. 25.
Al-Ajami has been jailed since November 2011, months after an Internet video was posted of him reciting "Tunisian Jasmine," lauding the 2010 popular uprising there that touched off the Arab Spring. He was sentenced last November.
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