Middle Eastern and North African governments need to release imprisoned activists and end using crackdowns on civil society as a method of preventing the spread the novel coronavirus, regional experts and activists said Thursday. Amnesty officials say the Middle East and North Africa is particularly vulnerable to the health threats posed by the coronavirus. Prisons and Human RightsAnother area of concern in the Middle East is prisons, many of which are overcrowded and house prisoners convicted of nonviolent or political offenses. Eight other Middle East and North Africa nations have announced that they will release prisoners, according to Human Rights Watch. Phillipe Nassif, Amnesty USA's advocacy director for the Middle East and North Africa, predicted that the conflict in Syria may be "temporarily scaled back" as actors in the conflict confront domestic issues associated with COVID-19.

Source: The North Africa Journal April 16, 2020 21:56 UTC