Bahrain: Martyr’s body detained as regime given poor liberty ranking

Twenty days have now elapsed since the martyrdom of a Bahraini youth, Abdul Aziz Al Abbar, but the Saudi-backed Alkhalifa rulers are still refusing to liberate the body for burial. The family has refused to accept the Death Certificate imposed by the regime which gives the wrong cause of death. Martyr Al Abbar had been shot at the end of February while taking part in a procession at the end of the funeral service of an earlier martyr. He was taken to the Salmaniya hospital where he received poor medical care until he passed away on 18th April. The regime wants to falsify the cause of death but the family is adamant that the Certificate says that he died of bullet wounds. The detention of the corpse is counter to the Islamic and human values and decency and has caused a wave of anger among Bahrainis.

More than 400 prisoners of conscience at the notorious Jaw Prison have continued their hunger strike despite being subjected to horrific repression including torture. A recently released former detainee, Baqir Al Sha’bani has been given a video message from the Bahraini prisoners confirming their strike and detailing the horrific injuries many have received after the attack last month by the regime’s Death Squads.

The US-based Freedom House has given very poor ranking to Bahrain in its latest report. Out of 197 countries, Bahrain ranks 187 in terms of freedom of press. This is a big blow to a regime attempting to use huge oil money to bolster its image abroad after three years of serious human rights violations.

Reporters Without Borders have listed a Bahraini photo journalist among 100 Information Heros. Ahmed Humaidan’s plight has been highlighted by the organisation’s report saying: ” He was arrested on 29 December 2012 for supposedly “storming” a police station on the small island of Sitra, in Bahrain, although he was not there at the time of the incident. This well-known photographer has languished in a cell ever since, subjected to death threats and psychological torture. No doctor has been allowed to examine him. He was given a 10-year jail sentence on 26 March 2014”. It ranked Bahrain at 163 out of 181 countries.

The Islamic Commission for Human Rights (IHRC) has published a report on the use of foreign mercenaries to repress native population. Entitled “Bahrain 's recruitment of foreign mercenaries to curb anti-regime protests” the report highlights the dependence of the ruling Alkhalifa family on foreigners to enforce its rule over the native population. It also gives facts and figures about the increasing numbers of Pakistanis in the security, military and police forces and how the people have paid high price in terms of human lives for this.

The Alkhalifa terror machine has continued its intimidation campaign against Bahrainis. Arrests have continued unabated. On 6th May, Mahdi Saleh Farhan, 16, was snatched in a savage raid on the family’s home at Hamad Town. Another under-aged Bahraini, Ali Jaffar, 17, was arrested in a similar raid on his house in Karzakkan Town. Mohammad Abdul Nabi Yaqoob, a teacher at Rafaa School was arrested yesterday. From Malikiyah Town Bahraini youth, Hussain Abdulla Bu Rashid was arrested.

Meanwhile the Alkhalifa judicial machine continued to sentence Bahrainis to harsh prison terms for taking part in anti-regime protests. Yesterday at least eight people were sentenced to jail terms ranging between three and ten years on trumpeted charges. While the Palestinian Ministry of the Detained and the Liberated reported this week that 5100 Palestinians remain in Israeli jails, the acceptable figures of Bahrain’s prisoners are around 3500. The regime has confessed to the delegation of the UN Human Rights Commission which visited Bahrain last month that it was holding around 2000 Bahrainis in its torture chambers. This is far from the reality according to the Bahraini human rights activists.

The Supreme Council of Scholars has written a letter to the Alkhalifa-sponsored “Dialogue of Civilisations” which has been held this week condemning the hypocrisy of the regime. Dialogue with the outside comes after an internal dialogue which is lacking in Bahrain. Instead of promoting harmonious relations among Bahrainis, the regime has ignited sectarian wars and suppressed the majority Shia natives. It destroyed their mosques, banned the Supreme Council of Scholars and exiled senior religious figures.

Bahrain Freedom Movement
7th May 2014