Bahrain Mirror: The Bahrain Shura Council passed on Thursday (April 13, 2017) a bill for the amendment of the military judiciary law, which allows the public prosecutor, after the approval of the military judiciary, to refer to military courts any crimes under the Protecting Society from Terrorists Acts Law, as well as any criminal acts affecting the country's internal and external security.

There is only one step left that would put the amendments into effect, which is King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa's ratification.

International human rights have strongly criticized Bahrain over these constitutional amendments that will give military courts the power to try any civilian accused of threatening the security of the state. Human Rights Watch said that the civil judiciary in Bahrain currently does not provide fair trials, noting that military courts issued harsh sentences in 2011 against hundreds of defendants for their participation in the pro-democracy protests.

Arabic Version