As a lawyer he is entitled to exercise his right to freedom of expression and association in accordance with Article 23 of the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers: "Lawyers like other citizens are entitled to freedom of expression, belief, association and assembly. In particular, they shall have the right to take part in public discussion of matters concerning the law, the administration of justice and the promotion and protection of human rights and to join or form local, national or international organizations and attend their meetings, without suffering professional restrictions by reason of their lawful action or their membership in a lawful organization. In exercising these rights, lawyers shall always conduct themselves in accordance with the law and the recognized standards and ethics of the legal profession."

Amnesty International is concerned that the authorities have arrested Dr al-Mugraby while his appeal against the Beirut Bar Association's decision to strike off his name from the Bar register is still pending. This is contrary to the Beirut Bar Association regulations and international standards governing the legal profession. Article 28 of the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers states "Disciplinary proceedings against lawyers shall be brought before an impartial disciplinary committee established by the legal profession, before an independent statutory authority, or before a court, and shall be subject to an independent judicial review."

Amnesty is concerned that Dr. al-Mugraby's arrest is politically motivated. It sounds that way to us. Amnesty says that Lebanese political prisoners are subjected to torture, ill-treatment and unfair trials .

Update: From the Washington Post:

Muhammad Mugraby, 64, who has degrees from the Lebanese University School of Law and Columbia University Law School, has documented the disappearance and detention of Lebanese citizens in Syria in a report for Human Rights Watch titled "An Alliance Beyond the Law." Syria is Lebanon's power broker and wields tremendous influence on its political class and security forces.

....Human Rights Watch, which honored Mugraby in 1997 as a human rights defender, has called on the Lebanese government to free him and described his arrest as "simply outrageous."

The Lebanese government's response was to move him yesterday from a crammed, windowless cell with other inmates in the Palais de Justice to another prison with worse conditions in Roumieh, northeast of Beirut, according to Kamal Batal, an engineer and fellow activist. Batal and Mugraby founded the Multi-Initiative on Rights: Search, Assist and Defend, or MIRSAD, a human rights watchdog. MIRSAD means observation post in Arabic.

We hope someone can help al Mugraby.