Bahrain Mirror: The United Nations Special Adviser for the Prevention of Genocide, Adama Dieng, said in a statement that Bahrain and the region are facing a critical moment, warning of the latest worrying political developments in the country.

This comes after a fierce crackdown campaign launched by the authorities against the political opposition in the country. The authorities' latest measure was revoking the citizenship of the island kingdom's supreme Shiite leader Ayatollah Sheikh Isa Qassim on Monday, June 20, 2016.

In a statement published on the UN website on Wednesday (June 22, 2016), Dieng expressed concern at the decision taken by the Interior Ministry of Bahrain to revoke the citizenship of Sheikh Isa Qassim, and on the impact this decision can have in increasing tensions among the different constituencies in the country.

He called on the Government of Bahrain to ensure that the right to freedom of peaceful assembly is fully respected and that any response to the protests is in accordance with Bahrain's obligations under international human rights law.

Dieng also called on the protestors to exercise their rights peacefully and to avoid any act of violence

"The decision to revoke Sheikh Isa Qassim's citizenship is the latest in a series of actions by the Bahraini authorities in recent weeks that have further restricted space for public participation and the enjoyment of human rights in Bahrain," said Special Adviser Dieng.

The Special Adviser described the latest developments documented by the United Nations as worrying, including the re-arrest of Nabeel Rajab, revocation of the nationalities of up to 250 individuals, imposition of travel bans on several others human rights defenders, dissolution of Al-Wefaq, increase in the sentence of opposition political leader Sheikh Ali Salman, and, earlier, the re-arrest of Ibrahim Sharif, as well as interrogating Shia clerics  and suspending Friday prayers by Shia mosques due to security issues.

"Repression will not eliminate people's grievances; it will only increase them," calling on the Bahraini authorities to seek to de-escalate the situation and on all decision-makers, in Bahrain and at the regional level, as well as on political parties and groups, military, religious, tribal and community leaders to exercise restraint and to take all possible measures to prevent the further increase of tensions," he added:

Adama Dieng further stressed that "the country and the region are facing a critical moment. It is now even more crucial for the authorities and for all relevant parties to recommit to an inclusive national dialogue in the interest of all people of Bahrain".

Arabic Version