Kuwait Court Upholds Jail Sentence for Online Activist

Kuwait appeals court on Monday upheld a four-year jail sentence against an online activist for insulting judges on Twitter, according to the court ruling.

A lower court in October handed the jail term against Ahmad Fadhel who was charged with writing comments on Twitter deemed offensive to a number of judges, who then sued him.

Monday's verdict is not final as can still be challenged in the supreme court.

The oil-rich Gulf state has sentenced dozens of tweeters to jail terms, mainly for insulting the country's ruler. Dozens of others are still waiting trial on similar charges.

A number of jail terms against online and stateless activists have been issued since the start of 2015.

Since a political crisis in June 2012, Kuwaiti authorities have ramped up efforts to curtail dissent.

Courts have sentenced politicians, online activists and journalists to prison terms for exercising free speech rights, HRW said earlier this month.