Human Rights Watch (HRW) announced Monday that Qatar had imposed travel bans on four prominent Qatari citizens without a clear legal basis. The men reported to HRW that security authorities were applying the travel bans outside of legal procedure and in apparent defiance of court orders.

Qatar’s state security apparatus holds extensive powers under the 2003 Constitution, which empowers its security forces to conduct extrajudicial investigations answerable only to the Emir. The detained individuals reported that their bank accounts had been frozen and that they and their families had suffered psychological and material harm by the travel bans.

The individuals included former ministers and government employees, including Muhammad al-Sulaiti, who had previously been detained by Qatari security forces in 2020. Prior to his arrest, al-Sulaiti had shared an Amnesty International report on Qatari travel bans on social media, along with other posts implying criticism of the practice of arbitrary travel bans.

Qatar has received increased scrutiny on its human rights record in recent years as the country prepares to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Travel bans have been used extensively as a punitive measure in Qatar, with even an extended member of the al-Thani royal family currently banned from travel outside of the country.