News / Persian Gulf

Bahrainis hold demo to demand release of imprisoned activists

Friday, 27 May 2016 1:05 AM [ Last Update: Friday, 27 May 2016 2:08 AM ]

Bahraini anti-regime protesters carry signs in English and Arabic as they demonstrate against Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix after Friday prayers in Diraz on April 1, 2016. ©AP

Bahraini demonstrators have taken to the streets in the tiny Persian Gulf country to demand the immediate release of political prisoners, especially prominent opposition figure Sheikh Ali Salman.

Protesters demonstrated in the village of Buri, located 13 kilometers (eight miles) southwest of the capital Manama on Thursday, demanding the freedom of Salman, who is the secretary general of Bahrain’s main opposition bloc, the al-Wefaq National Islamic Society, and other political prisoners.

The protesters carried the portraits of the prominent Bahraini opposition figure, other imprisoned dissidents as well as national Bahraini flags. They also chanted slogans against the ruling Al Khalifah regime.

The demonstrators also vowed to continue street protests until their pro-democracy demands are met and their rights restored.

Sheikh Salman was arrested in December 2014 on charges of attempting to overthrow the Manama regime and collaborating with foreign powers. He denies the charges, saying he has been seeking reforms in the kingdom through peaceful means.

In June 2015, a Bahraini court sentenced him to four years in prison on charges such as insulting the Bahraini Interior Ministry and inciting others to break the law. He was acquitted of seeking regime change.

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has repeatedly called on the Manama regime to immediately release the al-Wefaq leader.

Since February 14, 2011, thousands of anti-regime protesters have held numerous demonstrations on an almost daily basis in Bahrain, calling for the Al Khalifah family to relinquish power.

In March that year, troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were deployed to the country to assist the Bahraini regime in its crackdown on the peaceful protests.

Scores of people have been killed and hundreds of others injured or arrested in the crackdown.

Amnesty International and many other international rights organizations have frequently censured the Bahraini regime for the rampant human rights abuses against opposition activists and anti-regime protesters.

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