The Information Affairs Authority (IAA) is

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

's ministry of information that was formed in July 2010. The president of IAA is appointed directly by the

King of Bahrain The King of the Kingdom of Bahrain ( ar, ملك مملكة البحرين) is the monarch and head of state of Bahrain. The House of Khalifa has been the ruling family since 1783. Between 1783 and 1971, the Bahraini monarch held the title of ha ...

and has the rank of a minister in the Bahrain government. From July 2010 to 2012, Fawaz bin Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Khalifa was President of IAA. In 2012, he relinquished the position to take up an appointment as Minister of State for Communication, and Sameera Rajab was appointed in his place.

Responsibilities

The responsibilities of IAA include: * controlling the

Bahrain News Agency The Bahrain News Agency (BNA) is the state news agency of Bahrain. History and profile The BNA was established in 1976 with the name of the Gulf News Agency. In 2001 it was renamed as the Bahrain News Agency. The agency is run under the Minist ...

* controlling the Bahrain Radio and Television Corporation * regulating press and publications in the country * acting as the official spokesperson for the government of Bahrain. IAA is also the

press pass A press pass (alternatively referred to as a press card or a journalist pass) grants some type of special privilege to journalists. Some cards have recognized legal status; others merely indicate that the bearer is a practicing journalist. The na ...

issuing authority.

History

It was formed in July 2010 by a decree of

King Hamad Hamad bin Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa ( ar, حمد بن عيسى بن سلمان آل خليفة '; 28 January 1950) is King of Bahrain since 14 February 2002, after ruling as Emir of Bahrain from 6 March 1999. He is the son of Isa bin Salman ...

splitting off the information portfolio of the Ministry of Culture and Information. Prior to the creation of IAA, the information function was performed by

Mai bint Mohammed Al Khalifa Mai bint Mohammed Al Khalifa is a Bahraini politician and former government minister. Biography Sheika Mai bint Mohammed Al Khalifa was appointed Minister of Information in Bahrain in 2009; she was the first woman to become the Information Mi ...

as part of the Ministry of Culture and Information. In April 2012, Sameera Rajab, an outspoken supporter of

Saddam Hussein Saddam Hussein ( ; ar, صدام حسين, Ṣaddām Ḥusayn; 28 April 1937 – 30 December 2006) was an Iraqi politician who served as the fifth president of Iraq from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003. A leading member of the revolution ...

, and cousin of human rights defender

Nabeel Rajab Nabeel Ahmed Abdulrasool Rajab ( ar, نبيل أحمد عبدالرسول رجب, born on 1 September 1964) is a Bahraini human rights activist and opposition leader. He is a member of the Advisory Committee of Human Rights Watch's Middle East ...

, was appointed Minister of Information Affairs in the Bahraini government. In 2016,

Ali bin Mohammed Al Rumaihi Ali bin Mohammed Al Rumaihi ( ar, علي بن محمد الرميحي) is the Bahraini Minister of Information. He is also the Under-Secretary of the Royal Court for Communication and Information and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Bahra ...

was appointed Minister of Information Affairs.HM King issues royal decree forming the cabinet
/ref>

Independence

The first president of IAA, between 2010 and 2012, was Fawaz bin Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, who is a member of the Al Khalifa ruling family and a cousin of King Hamad and the current

Prime Minister of Bahrain In Bahrain, the Prime Minister is the head of government of the country. According to the Constitution of Bahrain, the Prime Minister is appointed directly by the King of Bahrain, King, and needs not to be an elected member of the Council of Rep ...

Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa ( ar, خليفة بن سلمان آل خليفة) (24 November 1935 – 11 November 2020) was a Bahraini royal and politician who served as the Prime Minister of Bahrain from 10 January 1970 until his death in 202 ...

. Prior to being appointed president of IAA, Fawaz served as the president of General Organisation for Youth and Sports. Fawaz's father, Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, served as Bahrain's Interior Minister from 1973 until 2004.

Criticism

In 2011, the Information Affairs Authority came under criticism for its handling of the Bahraini uprising. According to the report issued in November 2011 by the

Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry The Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI), also known locally in Bahrain as the Bassiouni Commission, was established by the King of Bahrain on 29 June 2011''Bahrain News Agency''" HM King Hamad Sets up Royal Independent Investigation co ...

: The IAA was also criticized by

Index on Censorship Index on Censorship is an organization campaigning for freedom of expression, which produces a quarterly magazine of the same name from London. It is directed by the non-profit-making Writers and Scholars International, Ltd (WSI) in association w ...

for its attempts to justify media censorship in Bahrain.

Notable people in the IAA

* Fawaz bin Mohammed Al Khalifa * Abdul Aziz bin Mubarak Al Khalifa * Maysoon Sabkar * Luma Bashmi * Fahad AlBinAli * Mariam Bukamal

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Information Affairs Authority 2010 establishments in Bahrain Ministries established in 2010

Government ministries of Bahrain Mass media in Bahrain Mass media in Isa Town