Bahrain Mirror: Bahrain's Fourth High Criminal Court, presided over by judge Ali Al-Dhahrani with membership of judges Jamal Awad and Hamad bin Salman Al Khalifa and Ahmad Al-Sulaiman as secretariat, sentenced a Bahraini to 10 years in prison over charges of firearm possession and holding assembly in Sitra.

The authorities claimed that the accused along with other unknown suspects (about 90 people) attacked policemen assigned to guard the Sitra police station by hurling Molotov cocktails, iron rods and stones at the police, while the accused opened fire at the police officers and then fled.

The Public Prosecution accused the suspect of acquiring and possessing, on April 17, 2015, a firearm and ammunition without a license for the purpose of using it in an act aimed at breaching security and for a terrorist aim. He and other unknown suspects held an assembly of more than 5 people in a public place for the purpose of breaching public security and also acquired and were in possession of Molotov cocktails.

Human rights organizations challenge the charges raised against the suspects 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 Issue