Bahrain's Public Prosecution says it is charging a person, identified by a rights group as a prominent lawyer, for misusing social media and publishing fake news that can harm public order.

The prosecution did not name the individual in its statement, but the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy identified him as lawyer and human rights campaigner Abdullah Hashim, who'd tweeted early Wednesday that he'd been summoned by prosecutors.

Prosecutors say they found a long history of comments on his Twitter account that question the state and its ability to maintain security and protect the public.

The rights group says it confirmed that prosecutors also ordered the lawyer be detained for one week, describing it as a continuation of the government's crackdown on freedom of expression.