al Khalifa finding it increasingly difficult to hide truth of prisoner torture

Bahrain doctor claims beatings and abuses against ‘Shiite traitors’ by Sunni jailers
By Associated Press, Updated: Saturday, July 9, 6:07 AM

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — During more than two months in a Bahrain prison, the routine rarely varied: Alleged abuses by day such as beatings with a rubber hose, and then being blindfolded and dragged into a corridor at night to lie on cold tiles with others arrested in the Gulf kingdom’s crackdown on pro-reform protests.

The account — recounted to The Associated Press by a surgeon from Bahrain’s main state-run hospital — is among many claims of rights violations as authorities crushed the Gulf’s main Arab Spring uprising. It also shows the huge challenges for Bahrain’s Western-backed rulers to rebuild their image and lead reconciliation talks that began this month.

The allegations by the surgeon and other medical personnel remain some of the most politically sensitive between Bahrain’s Sunni monarchy and the majority Shiites seeking a greater political voice in the strategic island nation, which is home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet.

“They insulted us as ‘Shiite traitors,’” said the doctor, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of fear of reprisals and worries about jeopardizing his defense in court. “They kept saying we were ungrateful to the (Sunni) king and what he did for us. ‘You don’t deserve to stay in Bahrain,’ they said.”

The state hospital became contested ground after the uprising began in February as it was flooded with injured protesters — some wounded by live ammunition — and authorities conducted arrest sweeps in the wards. A total of 48 Shiite doctors and nurses, including the surgeon, still face a range of charges from supporting the protests to trying to overthrow the state.

But the claims of abuses while in custody could bring further international scrutiny on Bahrain’s harsh tactics against demonstrators and are among the many bitter and unresolved tensions that could unravel the U.S.-encouraged talks between the leadership and opposition. …more