Tuesday, May 20, 2014

Bahrain steps up crackdown on anti-government protestors

Bahraini government forces have intensified crackdown on protests, clashing with mourners after the funeral of an anti-government protester on the island of Sitra.
According to reports on Sunday, at least one person suffered injuries after Bahraini forces fired tear gas to disperse the mourners. The mourners reportedly urged Manama to probe the cause of the death of Ali Faisal Al Akrawi.
Akrawi was killed in a blast near his home on Friday. He is believed to have been in hiding following an absentia prison sentence of ten years for his alleged role in protests against the Al Khalifa rulers.
Scores of Bahraini activists have been placed behind bars across the country, which is said to be supported by a number of Western countries, particularly the United States and Britain, despite its appalling human rights record.
Since mid-February 2011, thousands of pro-democracy protesters have held numerous demonstrations on the streets of Bahrain, calling for the Al Khalifa royal family to relinquish power.
On March 14, 2011, troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates invaded the country to assist the Bahraini government in its crackdown on demonstrators.
According to local sources, scores of people have been killed and hundreds arrested.
Physicians for Human Rights says doctors and nurses have been detained, tortured, or disappeared because they have "evidence of atrocities committed by the authorities, security forces, and riot police" in the crackdown on anti-government protesters.

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