Posts from — October 2011

Related Tweets following the Murder of Ahmed

bahrain tweets – Dear World, in my country you don’t call the police for help, you tweet for help on twitter, cause it’s the police shooting you – 3 hours ago

bahrain tweets – Ppl are still chanting and protesting here in Shakhoura and helicopter trying to spot the protesters n – 1 hour ago

bahrain tweets – Not long before protesters at Abusaiba were shot at, riot police accompanied with armed gov thugs were seen going into the village – 1 hour ago

bahrain tweets – The martyrs[Ahmed’s] brother was pulled away by police and has a minor injured in his hand. After which an officer threatened him – 2 hours ago

bahrain tweets – We’re ok, we’re with family. The family was not allowed in to see the martyr, [Ahmed] when the brother tried to go in, a police attacked him – 2 hours ago

Iron Fist Tactic Suspended – Saudi Forces Pull Back
October 06, 2011 – by PATRICK COCKBURN – Counter Punch

The Saudi security forces are pulling back in troubled parts of the oil-rich country’s Eastern Province to avoid further confrontation with Shia protesters, say human rights activists, but they warn that any small incident might provoke fresh clashes.

Saudi police and soldiers had previously been besieging the Shia town of al-Awamiyah which was the scene of shooting and riots earlier in the week. The Saudi Interior Ministry had accused protesters of carrying arms and throwing Molotov cocktails from motorcycles which they used to circumvent police checkpoints. It also alleged that they were directed by an unnamed foreign country – which in Saudi official terminology invariably means Iran.

Hamza al-Hassan, an opponent of the Saudi regime who comes from Safwa town in Eastern province, said yesterday that “so far as I know the security presence in al-Awamiyah was reduced dramatically last night”. Since Sunday there have been clashes around the police station at the centre of al-Awamiyah, a Shia town, sparked off by the arrest of the 60-year-old father of one activist wanted by the police. Video shows at last one police car on fire and young men with their headdresses wrapped round their heads to hide their identity.

Mr Hassan said that the extreme language of the Interior Ministry statement in Tuesday admitting to the riots and announcing that the state would use “the iron fist” against protesters had gone down badly in Saudi Arabia and created a backlash. He believes that the statement “was likely to inflame the situation by accusing all Shia of being Iranian puppets”.

There are an estimated two million Shia in Saudi Arabia, or about 10 per cent of the 23 million population, who have always been victims of discrimination so wide-ranging that it resembles apartheid against blacks in South Africa. Shia are denied access to top jobs in all walks of life and even prevented from becoming head teachers at schools teaching Shia children. Wahabite clerics, representing the predominant fundamentalist and puritan variant of Islam predominant in the Kingdom, denounce Shia as heretics. Shia festivals are often banned and the giving of distinctively Shia names to children is discouraged. In the oil city of Dammam there is reportedly only one Shia mosque for 150,000 Shia.

Mr Hassan said that the most important Shia cleric in al-Awamiyah, Nimr al-Nimr, had sought to calm things down yesterday by giving a sermon, telling young men “we will fight with words not arms”. But at the same time Mr Hassan warned that “any small situation might inflame the [wider] situation again”.

The spread of the Arab Awakening to the Shia minority of Saudi Arabia is important because they are concentrated in the region which hold the world’s largest oil reserves. One Saudi human rights organiser points out that the pipeline carrying six million barrels a day of crude to the oil terminal at Ras Tanura passes through al-Awamiyah where there have been clashes for the past four days.

Patrick Cockburn is the author of Muqtada: Muqtada Al-Sadr, the Shia Revival, and the Struggle for Iraq. …source

Bahrain jails more Shiite opposition
Wednesday, October 5, 2011 – DUBAI – Hurriyet Daily News

Bahrain on Tuesday sentenced 14 members of a Shi’ite opposition party, including its chairman, to up to 10 years in jail for calling for forcible regime change during Shi’ite-led pro-democracy protests this year, state news agency BNA said.

In two separate cases, nine Shi’ites were sentenced to 15 years in prison and four to 10 years for allegedly kidnapping two policemen, by the National Safety Court, set up specially by the Sunni-ruled kingdom after Shiite-led pro-reform protests were crushed in March.

The nine had used “force against [the policemen] and threatened him with serious harm,” said the prosecutor, Colonel Yusof Fleifal, as quoted by the official BNA news agency.

The verdicts handed out by a military court are the latest in a series of lengthy sentences imposed since June on opposition figures and protesters involved in an uprising in February and March for reforms in the Sunni-ruled monarchy. Bahrain quashed the protests in March, helped by troops from its Sunni neighbors Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Six members of Bahrain’s Islamic Action Society, or Amal, six members received 10-year jail terms and eight were given five-year terms after being convicted of organizing illegal protests, broadcasting false news and rumors, and transmitting pictures abroad which harmed Bahrain’s reputation, BNA said. Nine members of the Shi’ite group were acquitted. Amal chairman Sheikh Mohammed al-Mahfoodh, who was arrested with other party members in May, was tortured and held in solitary confinement for 45 days, his daughter said.

In April, the government said it would dissolve Amal and the main Shi’ite opposition group Wefaq, but held off after public criticism from the United States. The verdicts were issued a day after 36 other Shiites were jailed up to 25 years in cases related to the month-long protest which was quashed in mid-March and followed by a wave of arrests of Shiites.

Bahrain on Tuesday sentenced 14 members of a Shi’ite opposition party, including its chairman, to up to 10 years in jail for calling for forcible regime change during Shi’ite-led pro-democracy protests this year, state news agency BNA said. Bahrain has now handed down prison sentences to almost 80 opposition members.

In two separate cases, nine Shi’ites were sentenced to 15 years in prison and four to 10 years for allegedly kidnapping two policemen, by the National Safety Court, set up specially by the Sunni-ruled kingdom after Shiite-led pro-reform protests were crushed in March.

The nine had used “force against [the policemen] and threatened him with serious harm,” said the prosecutor, Colonel Yusof Fleifal, as quoted by the official BNA news agency. The verdicts handed out by a military court are the latest in a series of lengthy sentences imposed since June on opposition figures and protesters involved in an uprising in February and March for reforms in the Sunni-ruled monarchy. Bahrain quashed the protests in March, helped by troops from its Sunni neighbors Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Six members of Bahrain’s Islamic Action Society, or Amal, six members received 10-year jail terms and eight were given five-year terms after being convicted of organizing illegal protests, broadcasting false news and rumors, and transmitting pictures abroad which harmed Bahrain’s reputation, BNA said. Nine members of the Shi’ite group were acquitted. Amal chairman Sheikh Mohammed al-Mahfoodh, who was arrested with other party members in May, was tortured and held in solitary confinement for 45 days, his daughter said.

In April, the government said it would dissolve Amal and the main Shi’ite opposition group Wefaq, but held off after public criticism from the U.S. The verdicts were issued a day after 36 other Shiites were jailed up to 25 years in cases related to the month-long protest.

Compiled from AFP and Reuters stories by the Daily News staff. …source

Congressional Members Oppose US-Bahrain Arms Sale
POMED Wired – 06 Oct. 2011

Josh Rogin writes that “a growing group of lawmakers and non-governmental organizations are gearing up to oppose the State Department’s” proposed $53 million arms sale to Bahrain, and that “Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA) are circulating a resolution that would stop the sale from going through.” Senator Wyden told Rogin that ”providing arms to a government that is actively committing human rights violations against peaceful protestors is at odds with United States foreign policy goals,” adding that ”we should be promoting democracy and human rights in the region and not rewarding a regime that is jailing and in some cases killing those who choose to peacefully protest their government and anyone who supports them.” Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) also expressed reticence about the proposed arms sale.

Cole Bockenfeld, the Director of Advocacy at the Project on Middle East Democracy, attests that “failure to [re-energise diplomatic efforts toward Bahrain] risks an escalation of violence that could endanger the relationship both parties hold dear.” Bockenfeld suggests that the Obama Administration can assist the reconciliation process by encouraging the withdrawal of GCC forces from Bahrain and expediting the confirmation and deployment of Ambassador-designate Thomas Krajeski. Bockenfeld concludes that “the U.S. Administration and the Bahraini government have a responsibility to act and deliver meaningful reform and accountability, or risk the very scenario both wish to avoid.” …source

The U.S. approved to grant 400 M1A1 Abrams to Greece
October 3, 2011 – Army

According to information of the “Hellenic Defence & Technology” magazine, the U.S. authorities approved to grant 400 M1A1 Abrams tanks to the Greek Army, which will include options between simple refurbishment – worth tens of millions dollars for all the tanks- and upgrading to a higher level of operational capability, with a higher corresponding cost. The relative Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) is expected soon.

Also according to exclusive information of the ‘Hellenic Defence & Technology’ magazine, a Price and Availability letter was sent to U.S. authorities regarding 20 AAV7A1 and a low cost upgrade program for them. This is the first step to cover an operational requirement for 75-100 vehicles.

Additional exclusive details on these requirements as well as for Bradley IFVs, in a forthcoming issue of the ‘Hellenic Defence & Technology’ magazine. …source

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Daughter of jailed Bahrain opposition leader speaks about his torture whilst in detention
2011/10/06 – by bahrainjdm

A Bahrain military court today jailed Sheikh Mohammed Ali al-Mahfoodh, Chairman of the opposition Amal Party, for 10 years.

Daughter of jailed Bahrain opposition leader speaks about his torture whilst in detention(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) – A Bahrain military court today jailed Sheikh Mohammed Ali al-Mahfoodh, Chairman of the opposition Amal Party, for 10 years.

His daughter Hajar says whilst in detention he was tortured so badly she could barely recognize her own Father. She affirms there is no tangible evidence against him and his case is clear political persecution.

Another 13 members of the party received sentences of between 5 and 10 years at the same hearing.

Sheikh Mohammed Ali was first arrested on 2nd May 2011 but according to Hajar the Security Services had been trying to arrest him since one month before.

Sheikh Mohammed Ali al-mahfoodh
“They broke into my home four times and told me it’s either your husband or your daddy”. On April 2nd police arrested her husband in what she says was a ‘hostage situation’ to secure the arrest of Sheikh Mohammed Ali. In the same incident items were stolen from her home and she says she feared leaving the house in case they returned.

One month later when police finally caught up with Sheikh Mohammed Ali, they also arrested two of Hajar’s brothers at the same time.

By the end of May both brothers and the husband had been released but there was no word about Sheikh Mohammed Ali until the family received a call to say they could visit.

“I felt the man I met wasn’t my daddy. He couldn’t focus, his voice was different and he looked like a different man”. Hajar describes her visit to see her father in prison. “It was only later when I found out he had been tortured using electricity that I understood why he was in this state”.

A few days after the visit Sheikh Mohammed Ali’s first hearing began. The family was allowed to meet him for a few brief minutes after the hearing began and in this time he detailed his ordeal.

“He did not want to give full details, because he was worried about upsetting me, but he told me they wanted to kill him”. He told his daughter that he had been in solitary confinement for 45 days and given no food or water for the first 15 days, twice being admitted to hospital.

“They used mostly electricity and whipping to torture him and he is sure all those investigating were of Jordanian nationality”.

Since that first hearing Sheikh Mohammed Ali has faced a new hearing every 2 weeks until his sentencing today.

Hajar says from a legal point of view, as the defense lawyers pointed out, the trial is biased to say the least. “The defendants do not meet the lawyers regularly and the accused are not allowed to speak for themselves. She also says no tangible evidence of guilt has been offered according to the defense lawyers.

Sheikh Mohammed has been accused of trying to damage the image of Bahrain at an international level. There are 3 main prosecution witnesses, all claiming that he confessed his crime during detention. Something she categorically denies.

On the other hand there are “26 defense witnesses who all prove that there was no wrong doing on the part of the accused”. But in Bahrain the truth counts for nothing.”

Hajar says she fears for the future of Bahrain and thinks that unless real reform happens soon, violence will soon erupt.

“I am a peaceful person and my father is too. All we want is peace and unity in Bahrain. But the situation is getting worse and these military trials are pushing the country to the edge of breaking.”

Notes:
1- All raids happened without any permission from the prosecution.
2- We hope that the human rights organizations interfere in the case of Amal because it is a crime against freedom of speech and freedom of thought, both of which are global human rights according to the decent and creditable constitutions.
3- The detainees did not have the rights to speak during trials.
4- All false confessions have been taken under severe torture. The detainees are forced to confess under torture.
…source

cb editor: The parallels between US policy and conduct in 1980s Central America and the MENA are worth a review. One of the darkest chapters from the 80’s was a Central America dominated by the Regan-Bush phenomena. Iran Contra was the culmination of corrupt and violent dealings by the US in Central America as it backed dictators and supplied covert funding and other support for massive Human Rights abuses. The Democrats took the Republicans to task for such dealings, indictments and convictions of those in the highest part of US government followed. Today in Bahrain and throughout MENA that which was forbidden in Central America is key in open US war profiteering that boasts jobs, domestic economic rescue and improved security as part of a “war on terror”. Perhaps the most interesting aspect to all of this is, the Democrats now Preside and facilitate remarkably similar dealings openly and unashamedly.

Noam Chomsky on Central America

Bahrain Orders Retrials for Medical Workers
By RICK GLADSTONE – Published: October 5, 2011 – NYT

Bahraini Judicial authorities on Wednesday nullified the convictions and harsh prison terms given to 20 medical workers last week by a special security court prosecuting cases arising from civil unrest in the country. The medical workers were ordered released from custody, with new trials scheduled in a civilian court.
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The decision appeared to be at least a tactical retreat by Bahrain’s Sunni monarchy in the face of strong international protests over the punishments, including criticism from the secretary general of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon. The special court had condemned some doctors and nurses among the defendants to terms as long as 15 years because they had treated demonstrators who were wounded by security forces. Most of the protesters are members of the Shiite majority in the tiny Persian Gulf country.

Bahrain’s attorney general, Ali Alboainain, said in a statement carried by the country’s official Bahrain News Agency that he had studied the judgment that the security court rendered Thursday and had “determined that the cases should be retried before the ordinary courts.”

Citing his department’s authority to ensure “rightful application of the law,” the attorney general also said: “No doctors or other medical personnel may be punished by reason of the fulfillment of their humanitarian duties or their political views. Pending the outcome of the retrials, the accused shall not be detained.”

The security court found that during the height of the protests, the medical workers took over the Salmaniya Medical Complex, Bahrain’s largest public hospital, and used it as a base for antigovernment plots, including the storage of fuel bombs and weapons. The defendants were also accused of stealing medical equipment and “fabricating stories and lies.”

Supporters of the defendants denied those charges and said the medical workers were put on trial simply because they had treated wounded protesters, out of a duty to treat anyone who came to the hospital.

In what seemed a tacit acknowledgment that the special court had denied the defendants their rights, the attorney general said, “By virtue of the retrials, the accused will have the benefit of full re-evaluation of evidence and full opportunity to present their defense.”

The prosecution of the medical workers has become a signature theme in the course of the Bahrain conflict, and a delicate issue for the monarchy, an important American ally and the host to the United States Fifth Fleet’s naval base. Rights groups have accused the monarchy’s security forces of trying to systematically deny medical services to wounded protesters by mistreating and intimidating doctors and nurses.

Physicians for Human Rights, an advocacy group that has strongly criticized the Bahrain government’s behavior in the protests, reacted cautiously to the attorney general’s announcement on Wednesday. “ We are glad for any kind of review of the grossly unjust convictions,” said Hans Hogrefe, the group’s Washington director. At the same time, Mr. Hogrefe said, “ the proof will be in the pudding.”

Mr. Hogrefe said he believed that the attorney general’s announcement reflected a “response to the international outcry.”

He and others also noted that the announcement came as Congress began to evaluate the planned American sale of $53 million worth of weapons to Bahrain, including bunker-busting missiles, night-vision technology and dozens of Humvee vehicles. Human rights groups have written to Congress urging that the deal be blocked because of rights abuses in Bahrain.

Rights groups estimate that since the unrest there began, at least 34 people have been killed, more than 1,400 arrested and as many as 3,600 dismissed from their jobs.

J. David Goodman contributed reporting. …source

Arab Spring Makes An Autumn Return: Saudi Police Open Fire On Protesting Civilians
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 10/05/2011 – ZeroHedge

Today’s news that Greek protesters were back and getting occasionally violent caught nobody by surprise. However what may be unexpected is that not only is the Arab Spring back (almost in time for Christmas) but it is in the bastion of “stability”, not to mention crude oil, Saudi Arabia. As The Independent reports, “Pro-democracy protests which swept the Arab world earlier in the year have erupted in eastern Saudi Arabia over the past three days, with police opening fire with live rounds and many people injured, opposition activists say.” What? Never heard of this before? Yes, amazing how efficient the media veil is when it has an agenda.

Saudi Arabia last night confirmed there had been fighting in the region and that 11 security personnel and three civilians had been injured in al-Qatif, a large Shia city on the coast of Saudi Arabia’s oil-rich Eastern Province. The opposition say that 24 men and three women were wounded on Monday night and taken to al-Qatif hospital.

The Independent has been given exclusive details of how the protests developed by local activists. They say unrest began on Sunday in al-Awamiyah, a Shia town of about 25,000 people, when Saudi security forces arrested a 60-year-old man to force his son – an activist – to give himself up.

Mr Rayah added that “there have been protests for democracy and civil rights since February, but in the past the police fired into the air. This is the first time they have fired live rounds directly into a crowd.” He could not confirm if anybody had been killed.

The biggest loser when this spreads? Why the US of course.

The US, as the main ally of Saudi Arabia, is likely to be alarmed by the spread of pro-democracy protests to the Kingdom and particularly to that part of it which contains the largest oil reserves in the world. The Saudi Shia have been angered at the crushing of the pro-democracy movement in Bahrain since March, with many protesters jailed, tortured or killed, according Western human rights organisations.

Hamza al-Hassan, an opponent of the Saudi government from Eastern Province living in Britain, predicted that protests would spread to more cities. “I am frightened when I see video film of events because most people in this region have guns brought in over the years from Iraq and Yemen and will use them [against government security men],” he said. He gave a slightly different account of the start of the riots in al-Awamiyah, saying that two elderly men had been arrested by the security forces, one of whom had a heart attack.

“Since September there has been a huge presence of Saudi security forces in al-Qatif and all other Shia centres,” he said. Al-Qatif was the scene of similar protests in March, which were swiftly quashed by security forces.

We ask any of our readers who may be in the region (where unfortunately ZH is blocked), to send us video clips of any riots and any and all police intervention whether with or without use of deadly force. …source

Bahrain in danger of being ‘Berlin of the Middle East’ – Liam Fox
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 4 October 2011 13.42 EDT – by Paul Owen

Tory defence secretary warns that Shia protests and Sunni government crackdown will turn nation into dangerous flashpoint

Defence secretary Liam Fox warned at the Conservative party’s conference that Bahrain is in danger of becoming a dangerous flashpoint, a ‘Berlin of the Middle East’. Photograph: Phil Noble/Reuters

Bahrain’s religious divide means it is in danger of becoming “the Berlin of the Middle East”, Liam Fox said on Tuesday.

The defence secretary told a fringe meeting at the Tory conference in Manchester that the Shia protests and Sunni government crackdown in the Gulf nation meant it was becoming a potential flashpoint in the ongoing Arab spring.

“My worry is that if we don’t get a resolution in Bahrain you can see, on a Sunni-Shia front, that it almost becomes the Berlin of the Middle East,” Fox said.

Noting that “we have a lot of our naval assets there”, the defence secretary went on: “We have tried to impress upon the king and the crown prince to embrace reform. If you break, it’s because you won’t bend. There has to be a recognition of respect for human rights, there needs to be economic reform,” and the rights of the Shia majority must be respected by the minority Sunni ruling class.

Fox said he had spent a lot of time trying to get “others in the region” to help encourage the country to reform. “If we can do that it’s a way to unlock some of the other tension in the region.”

Bahraini security forces have made hundreds of arrests recently as part of a crackdown on mostly Shia protesters seeking greater human rights. A court in the small Gulf nation on Tuesday sentenced 26 activists to prison for their part in anti-government protests, bringing to 60 the total number convicted over the past two days.

Fox also emphasised that “the military conflict is not over in Libya”. The National Transitional Council says the war will be won when Muammar Gaddafi’s hometown of Sirte is conquered. Fighting continues there.

“People talk as if it is all over,” the defence secretary said. “We’ve got some way to go to ensure the population are not threatened by the remnants of the Gaddafi regime. There is a lot of work ongoing … Nato will continue the mission as long as necessary.”

The new government may want security assistance and advice on governing during the months to come, “but they may not,” Fox said. “It’s up to the government of Libya to decide how much advice they want … We have been there protecting the population from the Gaddafi regime and its violence so they could determine their own future, not so we can determine it for them.”

Fox was notably hawkish about the threat posed from Iran, which he said was developing a nuclear weapons programme: “We know that.”

He said Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s government was “a particularly nasty, brutal regime. It has an appalling human rights record that is getting worse … It is willing to export terror … It is developing a nuclear programme no reasonable person can believe is purely for civil use.

“If it was only the first two you could say: ‘Let’s try and manage and adapt.’ This programme will lead us into a very different world. If Iran becomes a nuclear weapons state it would not be very long before Saudi Arabia, Turkey, probably Egypt, would become nuclear weapons states. As I used to say to my patients: you can’t be a bit pregnant. It either is or it isn’t.”

Asked what actions Britain was prepared to stop this, Fox said: “We don’t want to rule anything out.

“We have said all along we do want to get a diplomatic solution … We continue with the process of diplomacy and sanctions, but … our negotiating position has to be that we do not rule anything out, because as soon as we started to do so it would strengthen the hand of the Iranian regime and weaken the chances of any settlement that would stop Iran becoming a nuclear weapons state.”

He called Iran “a major problem for the international community”.

But he was much less bullish about Saudi Arabia. “We have been long-time partners with Saudi Arabia. We have been encouraging them towards reform,” Fox said. “The steps towards reform have been small but welcome … The best way to proceed is not megaphone diplomacy, it’s to talk to our friends … rather than lecturing them from the pulpit, which unfortunately is all too common.”

Without Britain’s relationship with Saudi Arabia, on counter-terrorism especially, “our citizens would be a lot less safe”.

Fox stopped interviewer Peter Oborne when it was suggested the Saudis had “invaded Bahrain” earlier this year. “They didn’t invade Bahrain,” the defence secretary said. “There was a joint GCC [Gulf Co-operation Council] mission that went in at the invitation of the government of Bahrain.”

Fox was also asked whether Tony Blair was “fit for purpose” as the quartet’s Palestinian peace envoy. As many in the audience cried “No!” the defence secretary said: “I’m sure he means well, and I wouldn’t wish that anyone who might assist the process won’t succeed, but given his record as prime minister of the United Kingdom I’m not exactly sure what were the great qualities of Tony Blair that make him an exceptional international statesman.” …source

Protecting the US-Bahraini relationship
by Cole Bockenfeld – 04 October 2011 – Common Ground

Washington, DC – The United States has maintained a key security relationship with Bahrain since 1947, demonstrated most visibly by the headquarters of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet located in Manama. As the political situation in Bahrain continues to deteriorate, however, the United States needs to re-energise its diplomatic efforts toward Bahrain, and prioritise real reform and accountability. Failure to do so risks an escalation of violence that could endanger the relationship both parties hold dear.

In February, an estimated 300,000 people – more than half of the nation’s citizens – marched for greater political freedom and respect for human rights. In response, the Bahraini government resorted to brute force that has torn the fabric of Bahraini society at its seams.

In the ensuing crackdown, at least six per cent of the Bahraini workforce has been suspended or fired, and at least four out of every 1,000 citizens have been jailed as political prisoners.

Months after the masses have been forced from the streets, the dialogue has largely been declared a farce. Members of the opposition remain in jail (some facing life sentences), and nightly skirmishes between protesters and riot police persist. On Saturday, Bahrain held a second round of by-elections to fill 18 seats in the parliament vacated by the opposition in protest of the government’s crackdown, amid dismally low turnout rates that indicate widespread disillusionment with the political process.

In a troubling development, the US Administration recently proposed a new $53 million arms sale to Bahrain. In response, the Project on Middle East Democracy has drafted a letter to Congress, warning that if the United States “resumes arms sales as though circumstances had returned to normal, Bahrain’s rulers will have no reason” to take “meaningful steps toward accountability or political reform.”

Some American diplomats fear too much pressure on the government could antagonise the monarchy to the point they would call for the Fifth Fleet to leave. At the same time, the chasm between the Bahraini opposition and the government continues to widen as the crackdown continues and trust-building measures appear elusive.

Chances for both sides to return to the negotiating table are slim, but not non-existent.

Given the vital Bahraini-US relationship, the Obama Administration has the opportunity to play a role in moving national reconciliation forward. One change they could use this influence to affect is the withdrawal of Gulf Cooperation Council forces from Bahrain, a presence that emboldens hardliners within the Bahraini government. In addition, the United States could expedite confirmation and deployment of Ambassador-designate Thomas Krajeski, tasked with the top priority of rebuilding trust and returning all parties to the negotiating table in a meaningful and substantive dialogue.

Bahrain also has incentive to take constructive steps because it highly values its image in the international community as a Gulf country that is stable, modern and business-friendly. The government’s reaction to peaceful protests risks its rulers joining a club of regional autocrats bent on preserving power through repression. To preserve its reputation as a country of tolerance and prosperity, the Bahraini government could release its political prisoners, dropping politically motivated charges against them, under the rights afforded them by rule of law.

Along a similar vein, Bahraini security forces could allow peaceful political protests, and the government could call for a process for meaningful accountability of Bahraini security forces involved in the arrest, torture, unlawful detention and deaths of prisoners of conscience. Accountability is a critical building block to restore protesters’ trust in the sincerity of the government’s devotion to reform, and allowing non-violent protests creates a peaceful channel for Bahrainis to express their demands – a much preferred option to the armed conflict that has occurred in Libya, and is quickly developing in Syria.

The government could reinstate all public and government-invested enterprises’ employees dismissed from their workplace for their perceived support of or participation in political protests, as another demonstration that they are willing to negotiate.

Failure by the United States to use its considerable leverage in Bahrain, and failure by Bahrain to reform and live up its desired reputation as stable, modern and business-friendly, would be short-sighted, and jeopardise their valued security relationship. The US Administration and the Bahraini government have a responsibility to act and deliver meaningful reform and accountability, or risk the very scenario both wish to avoid. …source

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates September 29, 2011, 09:31 am ET

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Bahrain’s special security court on Thursday sentenced a protester to death for killing a policeman, and gave doctors and nurses who treated injured protesters during the country’s uprising earlier this year lengthy prison sentences, a lawyer said.

Attorney Mohsen al-Alawi said the tribunal, set up during Bahrain’s emergency rule, convicted and sentenced 13 medical professionals each to 15 years in prison. In addition, two doctors were sentenced to 10 years each while five other medics got 5-year prison terms.

The harsh sentences in the two separate court cases suggest the Sunni authorities in the Gulf kingdom will not relent in pursing and punishing those they accuse of supporting the Shiite-led opposition and participating in dissent that has roiled the tiny island nation.

Earlier this year, the same special court sentenced two other protesters to death for killing a police officer in a separate incident.

Al-Alawi, who was the defense lawyer for several medics, said the 20 medical professionals, who were charged with various anti-state crimes, and the protester who got the death sentence on Thursday can all appeal their verdicts.

A Bahraini rights group identified the protester as Ali Yousef Abdulwahab al-Taweel. The Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights said that another suspect, Ali Attia Mahdi, was convicted on Thursday as al-Taweel’s accomplice and sentenced to life imprisonment.

The tribunal’s military prosecutor, Yousef Rashid Flaifel, said the two men were convicted of premeditated murder in the killing of an officer in the oil hub of Sitra. In comments to the state-run Bahrain News Agency, Flaifel said the men committed a “terror act” by running over the policeman with two cars. He didn’t say when the incident occurred.
[Read more →]

…source

One woman’s story of the terror stalking Bahrain
29 September 2011 – Ivana Davidovic -WVoN co-editor – BCHR

It was 1.30 am on March 29 this year when a group of armed men broke into the family home of Jalila al-Salman in the Bahraini capital of Manama.
Some were wearing balaclavas and carrying machine guns. Others had batons.
There were at least 15 of them, ransacking the house, shouting at three terrified children whom they found in the bedrooms upstairs.

They barged into another bedroom where a woman was sleeping. “Don’t be afraid, we are the police!” – one of the men shouted as he held her by the neck, pressing a gun to her head.

You would be forgiven for thinking this was a raid on the house of an international terrorist when, in fact, they were after a female teacher.

“I was just in my nightdress. I had nothing to cover myself. I was on my bed and I thought I was dreaming. I could not believe what was going on.

“There were so many men inside that you could not catch a glimpse of the carpet on the floor. I heard a helicopter above my house.”
Al-Salman is still struggling to comprehend what has happened to her in the last six months – until then she was just the vice-president of the Teachers’ Association and a mother of three children under 12.

“They took me outside where there were over 15 cars parked. They wouldn’t let me say goodbye to my children. I was put on a minibus.

“As we were driving away, they told me to look outside the window as I would never see the outside world again. They hit me and called me horrible names. Names I can’t bring myself to repeat.”

Al-Salman is one of the symbols of repression of the Bahraini regime. Her crime – taking part in the recent non-violent protests at the Pearl Roundabout in Manama.

The protesters had had enough of a country run like a private company. Bahrain has had the same prime minister for 42 years and a large majority of the government and the judiciary belong to the ruling Sunni Al Khalifa family.

They are calling for an end to discrimination against Shias and a fairly elected government with genuine power.

Although parliamentary elections were held on September 24, only 13 nominally independent candidates participated. The opposition boycotted it.

On the night of her arrest the army men and the police were doing the rounds, collecting her colleagues from their beds, dragging them apart from their screaming families.

Al-Salman says that the teachers only went to the Roundabout on the sixth day, Sunday 20 March, after some of the protestors had already been injured and killed. As Bahraini citizens, they refused to accept that kind of treatment. …more

9 sentenced in Bahrain court
Published: Oct. 4, 2011 at 10:49 AM – World News

MANAMA, Bahrain, Oct. 4 (UPI) — A Bahrain military court sentenced nine defendants Tuesday to 15 years in prison on charges of kidnapping a police officer.

Gulf News reported the court, set up by King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa in March, said the police officer, Mohammad Nayef Falah, was taken blindfolded to the house of one of the defendants, kept there illegally and threatened.

In a separate case, the court also sentenced four defendants to 10 years in prison on charges of assaulting and kidnapping a police officer, Saif Allah Mohammad Ebrahim. The court said he was taken from the Pearl Roundabout to the Samaniya Medical Complex and held.

The court also sentenced six defendants to 10 years and eight to five years on charges including “inciting for the toppling of the political regime through the use of force, promoting illegal rallies, resisting the authorities, civil disobedience, going on strike and disseminating false information to undermine the regime,” Gulf News said.

The verdicts can be appealed, the publication said.

Bahrain’s Sunni monarchy violently cracked down on peaceful protests in the spring, most by members of the repressed Shiite majority.
…source

Bahrain bans Shiite ‘human chain’ rally
3-Oct. 2011 – Middle East Online

Head of Public Security says protest could cause traffic bottlenecks, it will be difficult for organisers, security bodies to control human chain outside Al-Wefaq offices in Manama.

DUBAI – Bahraini authorities banned Tuesday the Shiite opposition from organising a demonstration against the jailing of medics and activists over their roles in pro-democracy protests quelled in mid-March.

The head of Public Security, Major General Tareq Mubarak bin Daina, turned down the request by Bahrain’s main Shiite opposition group Al-Wefaq to organise a “human chain” protest in Manama, BNA state news agency said.

The security chief said the location for the protest, which had been planned to take place outside the offices of Al-Wefaq in Zinj, west of Manama, “is not suitable security-wise.”

He said the protest “could cause traffic bottlenecks… while it will be difficult for organisers and security bodies to control the human chain, which might affect the safety of participants and those using the road.”

Bin Daina ordered security measures to ban the event, BNA said.

Al-Wefaq slammed the ban as “illegal” and an “indication of constraints on the freedom of expression,” in a statement posted on its Facebook page.

It said the “human chain for solidarity with the prisoners of conscience and medics” was planned to take place in a secondary road and not on the artery cited in the ban.

On Monday, a Bahraini special court established to try defendants accused of taking part in a month-long Shiite-led protests slapped jail verdicts ranging between 15 and 25 years on 36 Shiites.

The same National Safety Court outraged international human rights organisations by condemning 20 medics to up to 15 years in prison for charges including attempting to overthrow the regime.

It had also sentenced 21 opposition leaders and activists to between two and 25 years over plotting to overthrow the regime in the Gulf monarchy.

Scores of Shiites were also been tried in the quasi-military court, including at least five sentenced to death for killing policemen.

Authorities said in May that 405 detainees had been referred to courts, while 312 were released. …more

Bahrain sentences more activists to jail
Twenty-six more sentenced to jail, raising number to 60 in two days, as officials ban opposition “human chain” protest.
Last Modified: 04 Oct 2011 18:38

After months of protests in the island kingdom, more than 400 people were arrested for their participation [EPA]

A Bahraini security court has sentenced 26 activists to prison for their part in anti-government protests, raising to 60 the total number convicted over the past two days in stepped-up prosecutions.

Bahraini authorities on Tuesday also banned the largely Shia opposition from organising a “human chain” demonstration against the jailing of medics and activists.

The official Bahrain News Agency said Tuesday’s verdicts included members of a Shia political group, Al Amal, which was banned by the Sunni monarchy after pro-reform protests began in February.

The three cases involved the alleged kidnapping of policemen and calls to overthrow the Gulf kingdom’s regime during a month of demonstrations, the chief military prosecutor said.

Among those listed was cleric Mohammed Habib al-Muqdad, who was also convicted of inciting attacks on policemen in sermons delivered at Pearl Roundabout, the focal point of the protests against the Al Khalifa dynasty.

In another case, four defendants, including Muqdad, were jailed for 10 years after being found guilty of kidnapping policeman Saifullah Ibrahim and taking him to Pearl Roundabout, “parading him in front of people gathering there and then to Salmaniya Medical Complex to incarcerate him”, BNA said.

They were also guilty of “spreading false news” through different means including “falsifying images and providing them to satellite channels,” it said.

‘Human Chain’

A top security official on Tuesday rejected a request by Wefaq, Bahrain’s main Shia opposition group, to stage a “human chain” protest because the protest “could cause traffic bottlenecks”.

Major General Tareq Mubarak bin Daina, the head of Public Security, said the planned location of the protest was “not suitable security-wise”, and that the safety of those participating and using the road could be affected.

Wefaq slammed the ban as “illegal” and called it a constraint on freedom of expression, in a statement posted on its Facebook page.

It said the protest was planned to take place in a secondary road and not on the main road cited in the ban.

Second day in a row

Tuesday’s verdicts were issued a day after 36 other Shia were jailed up to 25 years in cases related to the month-long protest which was quashed in mid-March and followed by a wave of arrests.

The same National Safety Court outraged international human rights organisations by condemning 20 medics to up to 15 years in prison for charges including attempting to overthrow the regime.

It had also sentenced 21 opposition leaders and activists to between two and 25 years over plotting to overthrow the regime in the Gulf monarchy.

Scores of Shia were also been tried in the quasi-military court, including at least five sentenced to death for killing policemen.

Authorities said in May that 405 detainees had been referred to courts, while 312 were released.

…source

Bahrain jails Shi’ite party members over protests
04 Oct 2011 12:24 – Source: Reuters – By Jason Benham

DUBAI, Oct 4 (Reuters) – Bahrain on Tuesday sentenced 14 members of a Shi’ite opposition party, including its chairman, to up to 10 years in jail for calling for forcible regime change during Shi’ite-led pro-democracy protests this year, state news agency BNA said.

In two separate cases, nine Shi’ites were sentenced to 15 years in prison and four to 10 years for kidnapping two policemen, BNA said.

The verdicts handed out by a military court are the latest in a series of lengthy sentences imposed since June on opposition figures and protesters involved in an uprising in February and March for reforms in the Sunni-ruled monarchy.

Bahrain quashed the protests in March, helped by troops from its Sunni neighbours Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

At least 30 people were killed, hundreds wounded and more than 1,000 detained — mostly Shi’ites — during the uprising and a crackdown that has drawn fire from human rights groups.

Six members of Bahrain’s Islamic Action Society (Amal), six members received 10-year jail terms and eight were given five-year terms after being convicted of organising illegal protests, broadcasting false news and rumours, and transmitting pictures abroad which harmed Bahrain’s reputation, BNA said.

Nine members of the Shi’ite group were acquitted.

Amal chairman Sheikh Mohammed al-Mahfoodh, who was arrested with other party members in May, was tortured and held in solitary confinement for 45 days, his daughter said.

“He was tortured with electric shocks and whips,” Hajar al-Mahfoodh told Reuters by phone. “There was no tangible evidence to condemn my father or the others.”

She said the men’s access to lawyers was restricted to just five minutes at each of the six court sessions.

In April, the government said it would dissolve Amal and the main Shi’ite opposition group Wefaq, but held off after public criticism from the United States.

“The courts have looked at many cases of trying to ‘overthrow the regime’ since King Hamad came to power. This shows the situation in Bahrain is not stable and political reform is essential for stability,” Mattar Mattar, a member of Wefaq, told Reuters.

“The cases always lack evidence of physical weapons used on the ground. Is it enough to overthrow the regime just through statements?” he said.

BAN ON PLANNED PROTEST

In a separate statement, Bahrain’s Interior Ministry said it would block a planned “human chain” protest by Wefaq around its headquarters in the capital Manama later on Tuesday.

“This most recent attempt to disrupt life in Bahrain and further inconvenience its citizens follows recent weekend rioting in a popular mall and calls for a traffic blockade aimed at preventing people from reaching their places of employment,” the government’s Information Affairs Authority said.

Wefaq said the protest was intended to take place on the service road in front of its headquarters, not on the highway.

Bahrain faces almost daily protests by Shi’ites, angry over a crackdown in which thousands lost their jobs and over government reform plans that fall short of giving the Gulf state’s elected parliament full legislative powers.

Bahrain handed out life sentences on Monday for 14 Shi’ites for killing a Pakistani national in October and sentenced 22 for terms of up to 18 years for attempted murder, “spreading terror”, and inciting hatred of the regime.

Last week a military court sentenced doctors to jail for between 5 and 15 years for occupying a medical complex, using ambulances to transport protesters, storing weapons and other offences which the defendants denied. (Reporting by Jason Benham; Editing by Alistair Lyon)