Bahrain Mirror: Bahrain's High Appeals Court upheld life sentences against 2 suspects accused of blasting a bomb in Khalifa Al-Kabir Street in Muharraq and 5-year jail term against Taiba Darwish over hiding fugitives. The court also upheld 2-year jail term against an appellant over hiding a convict. The case included 6 defendants, 4 of whom appealed the verdict.

Attorney General and Chief of the Terror Crimes Prosecution, Ahmed Al-Hammadi, said in a simultaneous statement that the fourth high criminal court issued its sentence against 6 suspects over the case of acquiring and using explosives, causing a blast for a terrorist aim as well as hiding fugitives. The court handed down life sentences to the first fourth suspects, 5-year jail term to the fifth suspect over hiding 2 fugitives and 2-year jail term to the sixth suspect over hiding a convict.

Human rights organizations challenge the charges raised against political detainees, since they doubt the independence of the judiciary, whose members are assigned by royal decrees, and since it issues sentences based on confessions extracted under duress and evidence presented by secret investigations and anonymous witnesses.

Arabic Version