Bahrain sentences Shia opposition leader to life in prison

The Bahraini Court of Appeals yesterday sentenced prominent Shia opposition leader Ali Salman to life imprisonment on charges of “colluding” with Qatar.

In June, the Bahraini High Court of First Tier acquitted Salman who is the head of the now outlawed Al-Wefaq movement, and two of his aides; Hasan Sultan and Ali Al-Aswad of the charges.

The Bahraini prosecution accused the three of “colluding” with a rival state, in reference to Qatar, in order to “carry out hostile acts inside Bahrain, damage its military, political and economic status and national interests, and undermine its reputation abroad” as well as receiving funding from Qatar.

In June 2017 Bahrain joined Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Egypt in launching a blockade on Doha accusing it of supporting terrorism, charges Qatar vehemently denies.

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