26 May 2011
The medical profession in Bahrain has been targeted by the authorities following the recent protests calling for political reform in the Kingdom. On 3 May 2011, the Military Public Prosecution charged 24 doctors and 23 nurses and paramedics of various offences based on “investigation results” and “confessions of some of the defendants”. Serious violations against the medical profession in contravention of Bahraini and international standards have included arbitrary arrest and detention, torture, abduction, beating and verbal abuse. Scores of medical personnel have been held in incommunicado detention during which they were reportedly tortured and ill-treated apparently to force them to confess to charges leveled against them.
26 May 2011
The medical profession in Bahrain has been targeted by the authorities following the recent protests calling for political reform in the Kingdom. On 3 May 2011, the Military Public Prosecution charged 24 doctors and 23 nurses and paramedics of various offences based on “investigation results” and “confessions of some of the defendants”. Serious violations against the medical profession in contravention of Bahraini and international standards have included arbitrary arrest and detention, torture, abduction, beating and verbal abuse. Scores of medical personnel have been held in incommunicado detention during which they were reportedly tortured and ill-treated apparently to force them to confess to charges leveled against them.
Further Information
The numerous and varied charges which the authorities have brought against the medical personnel include allowing “media, that supported demonstrators and were in their service, to enter the hospital and take pictures and films inside”, making “erroneous statements that include bogus and inflated numbers about the number of the injured”, “embezzlement of money”, “assault resulting in death” and “unauthorised possession of weapons and ammunition”.
Among those facing such charges are Dr Ali Al-‘Ikri, a surgeon at Salmaniya Hospital who was arrested on 17 March 2011 while he was operating on a patient, and Dr Abd-al-Khaliq Al-Uraybi. A couple of days after his arrest Dr Ali Al-‘Ikri was reportedly handcuffed and beaten. He was held in incommunicado detention along with wounded patients by the security forces. Dr Ali Al-‘Ikri and the patients were then reportedly tortured to force them to confess to offences. Dr Abd-al-Khaliq Al-Uraybi was arrested without a warrant during a dawn raid on his family home on 1 April 2011. Dr Al-Uraybi was reportedly handcuffed, blindfolded and beaten during the raid.
Detention, torture and ill-treatment of doctors, nurses and medics have been compounded by the militarisation of the medical services and the targeting of those belonging to the majority Shi’a community in the medical profession. This has led, among other things, to devastating effects on the medical services, including government control of the medical association.
Front Line believes that the arrest, detention and subsequent charging of members of the medical profession are related to their humanitarian work during a time of crisis, including providing unbiased medical services to patients injured during recent protests in Bahrain. Front Line is gravely concerned about the safety of medical professionals and fairness of the investigation procedure they face. Front Line also fears that “confessions” may have been extracted under torture or duress.
