News / Persian Gulf

Bahrain strips three national guards of citizenship

Sunday, 12 June 2016 6:55 AM [ Last Update: Sunday, 12 June 2016 6:56 AM ]

Bahrain’s King Sheikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifah

The Bahraini king has ordered the citizenship of three members of the National Guard to be revoked after convicting them of involvement in activities deemed detrimental to the interests of the regime.

King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa stripped Khalaf Ahmed Khadr al-Dakhil, Mohammed Tarak Hamad al-Awad and Adnan Saleh Massad Qaed Ayyash of their Bahraini nationality, Arabic-language Lualua television reported.

The report said the measure had earlier been rubber-stamped by the Bahraini cabinet. It didn't say what type of activities the three men were accused of having been engaged in.

Late last March, a court in Bahrain revoked the citizenship of five people after convicting them of terror charges.

The court also sentenced the five convicts to up to 15 years in jail after being found guilty of funding a terror group and carrying arms. Two of them were slapped with 15 years in jail and three others given five-year terms.

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 government in its crackdown on peaceful protests.

Scores of people have been killed and hundreds of others injured or arrested in the ongoing heavy-handed crackdown on the anti-regime activists.

Amnesty International and many other rights groups have repeatedly censured the Bahraini regime for the “rampant” human rights abuses against opposition activists and protesters.

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