Bahrain International Airport
On 9 February 2010, al-Khawaja was removed from a Turkish Airlines flight at Bahrain International Airport as he was about to leave for Istanbul to attend a human rights conference. Following a subsequent alleged altercation with an airport official he was arrested and charged with "insulting" the official. Front Line believes that al-Khawaja has been targeted solely as a result of his legitimate work in the defence of human rights.