Seriously ill Bahraini dissident faces deportation from UK

A seriously ill Bahraini dissident faces deportation from the UK after the British Home office rejected his asylum case.

26-year-old Ali Isa Hasan is expected to be deported to Bahrain on Tuesday, November 10.

There are mounting fears that Hasan could be arrested and tortured in the Persian Gulf country.

He suffers from severe depression and sickle cell anemia.

The Bahraini dissident fled to Britain back in 2011 to avoid the ruling Al Khalifa regime’s crackdown on pro-democracy campaigners.

 “I will try to stay here, because if I go back to Bahrain they will throw me in jail. They beat my father for 10 days during the protest in 2011. I fear I will be tortured, like they already tortured my father,” Hassan told the Independent.

 “I protested in Bahrain. I come from a family of protest and I have protested here and spoken at events in Parliament. They know who am I,” he added.

Hassan has been admitted to hospital four times during his 4-year stay in the UK.

His doctors are now warning that his life is at “even greater risk” if he is deported to the Persian Gulf state of Bahrain. 

‘Sell-out of democracy’

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Committee against Torture in Bahrain has described the move as “sell-out of democracy.”

“This is a complete sell-out of not only Ali Isa Hasan, not just of his family, but a complete sell-out of democracy…We are sending back a young man who will be tortured on his arrival and in his case, he will probably die. That is the British government. They ought to be ashamed of themselves and we demand that he is given the permit to stay in the UK…” Rodney Shakespeare told Press TV’s UK Desk on Saturday.

The Bahraini regime has been under fire from the international rights organizations for launching a heavy-handed crackdown on the peaceful pro-democracy protesters.

Scores of peaceful protesters have been killed and many more put behind the bars since 2011, when Bahrainis took to the streets to protest against the ruling regime and demand for democratic reforms.

Sacrificing human rights

The US and its allies including the UK, have been criticized for their muted response to the rights violations in Bahrain, which is home of the US Fifth Fleet.

Rights activists have already slammed the British government’s plans to build a permanent military base in Bahrain, describing it as “reward” for London’s silence on Bahraini regime’s human rights abuses.

They accuse the UK of having “sacrificed” human rights at the “altar of trade and military deals.”

A week ago, the UK started the construction work on a new Royal Navy base in the Persian Gulf state of Bahrain.

The £15-million base which is mainly funded by the ruling Al Khalifah family will accommodate Britain's new Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers and Type 45 destroyers.

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