"Bahraini cleric in 700-day solitary confinement" HRC confirms

Rasa - Bahrain's human rights community announced that a member of Al-Wefaq Islamic Society is in 700-day solitary confinement.

News ID: 432066

Date: 31 August 2017 - 01:44

RNA - Bahrain's Human Rights Committee reported on the situation of Shaikh Hasan Isa, a former MP and a member of the Al-Wefaq Islamic Society in the Al-Khalifa prisons.

The report, entitled "Conscience Execution under the Pretext of Terrorism," emphasized that Sheikh Hasan Isa was sentenced to 10 years in prison and more than 700 days in solitary confinement for religious, political and social activities.

The report says that keeping the Sheikh's fate secret up to 16 days after his arrest, denying contact with the family till the end of the public prosecutor's interrogation, various threats in case of denying to sign the confession sheet, checking bank accounts without permission from the prosecutor's office, the investigation of cell phone content, a ban on prayer and bathing for 11 days, arrest without permission of the Public Prosecutor's Office and unfair trials based on confessions taken after torture are among the most serious offenses against him.

Bahrain's Human Rights community added that according to the developments in the tribunal, the General Prosecutor's Office and the trial board proved violation of rights and freedoms approved by Bahrain's law and international law, and none of the criteria of a fair trial of Sheikh Isa Qassem has been observed.

Referring to the fact that the cleric's arrest is also grossly cruel and violating human rights, the community said that the initial sentence issued against Sheikh Hasan Isa also proves the lack of grounds for the independence and impartiality of the Bahraini judiciary.

The report also addresses the issue of Shaykh Hassan Isa’s way of living, the way of arrest, unfair allegations, trial procedures, lack of fair trial criteria, and review of the initial sentence.

The al-Khalifa court considered the cleric’s aid to families of Bahraini detainees as “helping terrorists” and sentenced him to 10 years in prison.

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