Bahraini court hands down prison sentence for dead activist

A court in Bahrain has handed down a three-year prison sentence to an anti-regime activist and protester who died in detention last year.

Bahraini policemen advance to disperse protesters during an anti-regime demonstration in a village near Manama.
Mohammed Mushaima died in police custody in October 2012 while he was serving a seven-year sentence for participating in anti-regime demonstrations.

Following his death, lawyers said that Mushaima suffered from severe sickle-cell anemia and died in custody from inadequate health care.

The Bahraini Center for Human Rights also announced that Mushaima was one of many prisoners of conscience in Bahrain in need of immediate medical care who have been denied treatment.

Since mid-February 2011, thousands of pro-democracy protesters have staged numerous demonstrations in 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 the peaceful protesters.

According to local sources, scores of people have been killed and hundreds arrested.

A new release of US Defense Department’s documents also revealed that Washington has been providing the Al Khalifa regime with weapons and combat vehicle parts.

Despite the foreign-backed clampdown, the Bahraini regime has failed to stop the demonstrations that continue on an almost daily basis.