Bahrain

"Bahrain (Arabic: ‏البحرين‎, al-Baḥrayn), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain (Arabic: مملكة البحرين‎, Mamlakat al-Baḥrayn), is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,234,571, including 666,172 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002. ..."

"After the opposition's boycott of the 2014 parliamentary elections and unsuccessful attempts at compromise, relations between Bahrain's government and the opposition remained tense in 2015. The opposition groups Al-Wefaq and the National Democratic Action Society, among others, faced heightened harassment during the year. In June, a Bahraini court sentenced Al-Wefaq president Ali Salman to four years in prison on a number of serious charges, including promotion of violent political change."