Lawyer says 5 Bahrain teens sentenced up to 15 years in prison for attacking police
By The Associated Press – 4 April, 2013

MANAMA, Bahrain – A defence lawyer in Bahrain says five teenagers are among a group sentenced up to 15 years in prison for attacks on police during anti-government demonstrations.

The convictions Thursday could raise fresh objections from rights groups that have already complained about Bahrain’s failure to use more lenient juvenile laws in trying other young suspects.

The Sunni-ruled Gulf kingdom has faced more than two years of unrest as majority Shiites press for a greater political voice.

Lawyer Zahra Masoud said the court sentenced three teens — 16 and 17 years old — and one 20-year-old to sentences up to 15 years for attempting to attack a police car with homemade firebombs.

Two others, aged 15 and 16, were sentenced in absentia.

Bahrain is home of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet.
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Bahrain: 21 medics cleared in closely watched case
By Emily Alpert – 28 March, 2013 – Los Angles Times

A Bahraini court on Thursday cleared 21 medics who had been convicted in connection with protests against the government, a victory for rights activists in the closely watched case.

The exonerated doctors, nurses and other medical personnel were among scores of health professionals arrested and charged during the unrest that erupted two years ago in the island monarchy.

Bahrain faced intense criticism from human rights groups and the U.S. State Department for pursuing the charges; many of the accused medics claimed they were tortured and forced to confess to charges such as “instigating hatred” and “taking part in illegal assemblies” after treating injured protesters.
Rights activists celebrated the court decision but said Bahrain must go further to ensure justice for the medics and investigate their alleged torture. “If we agree these guys are innocent, it needs to explain why it got a stack of signed confessions from them and how they were produced,” said Brian Dooley of the U.S.-based group Human Rights First.

Government spokespeople could not be reached immediately for comment by phone or email as of Thursday evening in Bahrain.

The 21 medics who were cleared Thursday were among a group of 23 medical professionals convicted of misdemeanors after the 2011 protests. Two did not appear in court to appeal; a score more were convicted of felonies in another case, though some were acquitted.

Thursday’s ruling was “the first step toward justice,” said rheumatologist Dr. Fatima Haji, who was convicted and later cleared of felony charges that included spreading misinformation about protest injuries. Now that the 21 medics are cleared, “they need to have some accountability for those who made false accusations against them.”

Haji cautioned that state prosecutors could still challenge the decision. Three medics remain imprisoned in the felony case, one of them sentenced to five years.

Unrest erupted in Bahrain two years ago as protesters challenged the Sunni Muslim monarchy, pressing for greater democracy and more of a voice for Shiite Muslims. The ensuing state crackdown was marked by beatings, torture and other abuses, an independent commission initiated by the government found.

Bahrain has since pledged reforms, retraining police and pursuing charges against officers. Government spokesmen say the state is working diligently to address the problems laid out by the commission; it recently launched a national dialogue on reform.

But local activists and rights groups abroad say change has been slow and persecution has continued. Police, frequently accused of using excessive force against demonstrators, have defended their actions as protecting officers who face deadly Molotov cocktails on the streets.

Beyond the street battles, Dooley pointed out that dissidents remain imprisoned on charges of trying to overthrow the government, convictions that rights groups say resulted from solely peaceful protest. Human rights activist Abdulhadi Khawaja, sentenced to life in prison in one such case, has been on a hunger strike for more than a week and a half along with his daughter, Zainab, who was sent to jail for three months on charges of insulting a public employee.

In an impassioned letter published by New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof, she wrote that she wondered what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. would say about the U.S. “turning a blind eye to the blood and tears being split in the quest of freedom” in Bahrain, a longtime ally seen as a strategic bulwark against Iran.

The U.S. has expressed concern about human rights in Bahrain, but activists say its words have been too muted. Last year Washington resumed some arms sales to the country, stressing that the allowed items “are not used for crowd control.” Dooley argued that the victory for the medics, whose case received more attention abroad, shows more pressure is needed. …more

Bahrain: Alkhalifa killings, torture continues in preparation for F1 race
Bahrain Freedom Movement – 5 April, 2013

As the Bahraini people continue their revolt against staging the Formula 1 race under the patronage of the Alkhalifa, the regime has intensified its crackdown against the pro-democracy activists, detaining and torturing them in revenge.

At least fifteen people were arrested on Wednesday, taken to the torture dungeons and abused. More were snatched from Duraz, Sitra and other towns as pre-emptive desperate steps to stop people exposing Alkhalifa crimes to the world during the race. The walls in several towns and villages were decorated with paintings and cartoons highlighting the people’s predicaments as the regime’s mouthpieces went into full swing to present deceptive image of a country ravaged by Revolution. “Don’t race on our blood” is the main message to the teams and drivers of the F1, with cartoons depicting Bahrain’s dictator using people’s blood as fuel to the cars.

One of the victims of the decision to hold F1 race in Bahrain is Abdul Ghani Hassan Al Rayes, 66 from Duraz Town. He was martyred on Monday night 31st March as he waited for his son to be released from the torturers hands. The son had been arrested earlier in the day together with other young boys for chanting anti-regime slogans. They were taken to Budayya’s police station where they were interrogated, tortured and abused as their families waited outside. The martyr was in agony as he heard the cries of his son being tortured. He was suffering in silence. As the cries of the victims intensified, he started feeling pain in his chest. When his other son requested his father be seated or offered water the torturers refused. He was rushed to hospital by his son but died on the way. The way he lost his wife has touched Bahrainis who are dying in silence as their anger boils inside them at the way their country is being raped by the Alkhalifa dictators and Saudi occupiers. His funeral was savagely attacked by members of the Death Squads operated by the dictator’s royal court.

Meanwhile, the Saudi regime has put one of its most famous victims on trial. Sheikh Nimr Al Nimr is accused of “spreading corruption on earth” for calling for democratic rights and an end to the Al Saudi hereditary dictatorship. On 8th July 2012 he was arrested after being seriously wounded by the regime’s forces. He was taken to hospital under military guard where he was surrounded by soldiers. He was then transferred to jail where he was abused and ill-treated. He is accused of opposing the regime and plotting to overthrow the tyrannical AlSaud dynasty. This serious development comes at a time of heightened tension in the land of Arabia as a result of regime’s intensification of repression and dictatorship. The Prosecution has called for beheading Sheikh Nimr Al Nimr, who is from the down-trodden Eastern Province and who had wholeheartedly supported the Bahraini Revolution. Scholars in several countries have issued statements warning the Saudis of dire consequences if the respected spiritual leader is executed by a regime that has always lacked popular legitimacy. The Saudis must release Sheikh Al Nimr lest they inflame the situation further. The country is facing increasing tension as the people, both Shia and Sunni, continue their calls for release of their prisoners. …more