Bahrain Jails 50 Shiites For Up To 15 Years

Joanne Faulkner,

Editor (Asia – Middle East & Central)

 

MANAMA – A Bahrain court has this week made the decision to jail 50 Shiite Muslim protesters accused of forming opposition groups to the current Sunni-ruled kingdom and trying to topple the government following protests in 2011. The 50 have been jailed for between 5 and 15 years, which has lead to a subsequent outcry from Amnesty International who have called for an investigation into the alleged reports that some of those imprisoned may have been tortured. Twenty of the suspects were tried in absentia. The Sunni-Muslim royal family accuses the defendants of being terrorists. Some have also been accused of spying for neighbouring Iran, who are seen as fuelling the ongoing unrest in the state. The 50 defendants were charged with forming the ‘February 14 Revolution Youth Coalition’, which authorities in the Sunni-ruled kingdom accuse of terrorism.

The uprising in February 2011 saw Shiite-led demonstrations asking for more rights for the majority community, long complaining of discrimination attracted great attention. Since then, there have been almost daily protests and security forces  have taken a tough line to try and combat the protests, whose organisers have a large presence on social media. 89 people have died since the first protests erupted on February 11, 2011.

Bahrain is on the front line of a struggle for regional influence between Sunni Saudi Arabia, a close ally, and Shia Iran, which denies Bahraini accusations of fomenting Shia protests. While Bahrain is seen by the West as of key strategic importance as it provides a haven for the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet in the Gulf.

There has been no immediate comment from the Iranian government.

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Image Courtesy: Mahmood al-Yousif, via Wikimedia Commons