The five journalists were given life sentences for working for the Iraqi occupation newspaper Al-Nida. They were taken into custody after Kuwait’s liberation and charged with collaboration. The trials, which began on May 19,1991, in martial-law courts, failed to comply with international standards of justice. The defendants were reportedly tortured during their interrogations. Their defense—that they were coerced to work for the Iraqi newspaper—was not rebutted by prosecutors. On June 16, 1991, the journalists were sentenced to death. Ten days later all martial-law death sentences were commuted to life terms, following international protests.