Bahrain Court Upholds Jail for 13 Opposition Activists

Bahrain’s highest appeals court upheld on Monday jail terms against 13 prominent activists, seven of whom are facing life in prison.

The Court of Cassation rejected the final appeal by the 13 opposition leaders, the lawyers said. Among those sentenced to life is well-known activist Abdulhadi Khawaja who in June ended a 110-day hunger strike.

Two others sentenced to life are Hassan Mashaima, head of the opposition Haq movement and Abduljalil al-Singace, a member of the same group.

The activists’ crime was that they took part in 2011 anti-government protests. They were ‘convicted’ by a military tribunal on charges that included “setting up terror groups to topple the regime”.
The defendants were retried later in a civil court.

In September, a lower appeals court upheld life sentences for seven of the activists, including Khawaja, Mashaima and Singace, and jail terms ranging from five to 15 years for the others.

Since February 2011, the Gulf Kingdom has witnessed pro-democracy protests. However these protests were crushed by security forces, killing dozens and injuring hundreds others.
Hundreds more were arrested or sacked from their jobs as they took part in peaceful protests.