DUBAI: Bahrain’s largest Shia opposition group slammed the jailing for life of eight activists, saying the harsh punishment will do nothing to ease the political crisis in the Sunni-ruled kingdom.
The Islamic National Accord Association (Al-Wefaq) has "received these sentences with shock, especially as they contradict the call for national dialogue" proposed by King Hamad and set to begin on July 1, the group said in a statement received by AFP on Thursday.
The life sentences "will overshadow the stability in the country as they will also make the political crisis remain for life as well," the Al-Wefaq statement said.
The National Safety Court of first instance on Wednesday sentenced eight Shia opposition activists to life in prison for "plotting to overthrow" the kingdom’s rulers, the official Bahrain News Agency said.
It also jailed 13 other activists for two to 15 years on similar charges.
The judgment drew an expression of concern from Washington, which stations its Fifth Fleet in the small but strategic Gulf archipelago.
Scores more activists are facing trial on charges linked to Shia-led protests that have rocked the kingdom since mid-February, in the semi-martial court set up under a "state of national safety" decreed by King Hamad a day before protesters were evicted from a Manama square in mid-March.
Authorities backed by troops that rolled into Bahrain from fellow Gulf nations quelled the protests while security forces set about arresting hundreds of activists, as well as doctors, medics and teachers accused of backing protesters.
Bahrain’s interior ministry said 24 people, including four policemen, were killed in the unrest. The opposition said scores were arrested, amid widespread allegations of torture, while hundreds were dismissed from their jobs.
Four people have been sentenced to death and three others to life in prison over the killing of two policemen during the protests. Nine others were jailed for 20 years after being convicted of abducting a policeman.
