A year of intensified persecution in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia
We wish you all a Happy and Prosperous New Year, with peace, love and freedom
On Wednesday 25th December the forces of the khalifi regime in Bahrain detained Reda Marhoon, 17 from Sanabis town. He was snatched from the Bahrain-Saudi causeway. Also, from Duraz town, Hussain Mohammed Jawad AlShehabi was detained. He has been in hiding for almost ten years. He was wanted to serve an arbitrary prison sentence of five years on trumped up charges. He has been transferred to Jau prison.
On 30th December three political prisoners at the notorious Jau Prison were transferred to isolation cells for insisting on their right to contact their families. On Sunday Mohammed Al Khor was tortured by the police officers when he insisted on calling his family. He was moved to an isolation cell. Two others were also moved to isolation: Sadeq Al Ghasra and Ali Hajji for insisting on calling their loved ones.
Political prisoners languishing in isolation cells have staged hunger strike in protest at the dire situation imposed on them. Human Rights activist, Ali Hajji has urged the authorities to investigate the attacks on the political prisoners and to grant them the right to contact their families. He also called for better sanitary and health conditions in the jail.
Human rights woman activist, Zainab Khamis said that sick political prisoners are subjected to continuous attacks and violations that include medical neglect. On 28th Dece3mber she wrote on her twitter account that some of the sick prisoners are left by the prison officers in their cells for long periods without attending to their medical conditions. She said that medical care is a right and must not be used as a weapon against the prisoners. She called for the release of the political prisoners and to grant them their full human rights.
The families of the political prisoners issued a statement to highlight the predicament of their sons who are languishing at the khalifi jails. This is to refute a statement by the regime’s human rights committee that had attempted to whitewash the regime’s crimes against native Bahraini prisoners. In their statement the families said that the prisoners were subjected to collective punishment including being kept in their cells for 24 hours, with their hands shackled for more than one week. They were banned from taking showers or change their clothes. This led to the spread of skin diseases. Bright lights were left on the whole night to deprive them from sleep, They were denied proper medical treatment.
Bahrainis staged many demonstrations to mark the tenth anniversary of the detention of Sheikh Ali Salman, the Secretary General of AlWefaq Islamic Society. There were protests in Duraz, Bilad Al Qadim Abu Saiaba and elsewhere. He was arrested on 27th December 2014 and given life sentence.
The torture by the regime forces has left many people with physical and mental ailments. Abdul Zahra Mushaima was in excellent health when he was detained shortly after his brother, Sami was executed by the regime in January 2017. He was tortured and abused until he developed mental problems. He was severely beaten on his head and held for many years. He is now almost incapacitated.
A year ago, Pakistani civil engineer Abdul Wali Skandar Khan died while working on a Neom construction site in Saudi Arabia. His family is still battling for answers and justice. Human rights groups have complained of substandard safety precautions, meagre labour rights and working conditions that are, in certain cases, tantamount to slavery.
Saudi Arabia executed 330 people this year, the highest number in decades, despite de facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman’s 2022 assertion that the death penalty had been eliminated except for murder cases under his vision for a new open kingdom. The country is spending billions to transform its reputation for strict religious restrictions and human rights abuses into that of a tourism and entertainment hub under the Vision 2030 plan launched by the crown prince, also known as MBS.
The latest execution toll, compiled from execution announcements by human rights NGO Reprieve and verified by Reuters, is a big jump from the 172 total for last year and 196 for 2022. Reprieve said it was the highest ever recorded. “This reform is built on a house of cards that is built on record numbers of executions,” said Jeed Basyouni, who works with Reprieve. More than 150 people were executed for non-lethal crimes this year, according to the tally, which rights groups say is contrary to international law.
A Bulgarian court recently issued a final ruling to extradite Saudi activist Abdulrahman al-Khalidi to Saudi Arabia, where he’d be at risk of serious abuses. The ruling comes after three long years of unprecedented illegal detention, institutional abuse and flagrant violation of Abdulrahman’s basic human rights, raising suspicions of collusion between Bulgarian authorities and Saudi secret services, as well as serious concerns about Bulgaria’s commitment to democracy and international law.
Bahrain Freedom Movement
1st January 2025
