(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - A Bahraini woman identified as Fatima, a close relative of prominent Bahraini rights activist Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, said she was sexually assaulted by Saudi-backed forces in her house.
The regime forces assaulted Fatima after storming into her house to arrest her husband, she said in an interview accompanied by rights activist Zainab al-Khawaja.
Zainab, the daughter of Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, ended a 10-day hunger strike after international activists said they needed her to speak up for those detained in the crackdown.
Her father was arrested earlier in April.
Bahraini forces have arrested hundreds of activist so far during the clampdown on peaceful protests.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay has voiced "deep concern" about the continued detention of activists in the country.
Pillay also cited the prosecution of scores of medical professionals, and the death sentence handed down to four protesters after a closed-door military trial, said UN spokesperson Farhan Haq.
Anti-government protesters have been holding peaceful demonstrations across Bahrain since mid-February, calling for an end to the over-40-year rule of the Al Khalifa dynasty.
On March 14, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates deployed police and military forces in the kingdom at Manama's request to help quell the nationwide protests.
According to local sources, scores of people have been killed and hundreds arrested so far during the clampdown on peaceful protests.
The foreign deployments are reported to have contributed to a rise in the violence against the protesting public.
Recent reports say Riyadh is sending more troops to Bahrain ahead of planned anti-government rallies there.
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