Pakistani court grants bail to father of prominent activist

Muhammad Ismail, 66-year-old father of Gulalai Ismail, to be released after more than two months in jail.

Islamabad, Pakistan – A Pakistani court has granted bail to Muhammad Ismail, the father of a prominent Pakistani rights activist, who was arrested earlier this year on “terrorism” charges that local and international rights groups have condemned as being part of a campaign of “harassment”. The court in the northwestern city of Peshawar granted bail to Ismail on Monday, and he was expected to be released a day later, his daughter Gulalai Ismail told Al Jazeera. “My father was incarcerated to silence me and to punish him for his dissent,” she said. “However, the authorities must realise that oppression and judicial harassment only strengthen the dissenting voices.”