(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - Activists said Nabeel Rajab -- the head of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights -- was arrested by Al Khalifa security forces on Saturday as he tried to join a protest rally calling for the release of another human rights activist, Abdulhadi al-Khawaja.
According to witnesses, the demonstrators were attacked and beaten by Bahraini forces that used tear gas to disperse the protesters.
Rajab is reportedly being held at a police station in the capital city.
Meanwhile, Amnesty International has called on the regime in Manama to immediately release the prominent 52-year-old activist al-Khawaja, who was arrested in April 2011 for leading a demonstration.
His life is reportedly at risk as he has been on a hunger strike for almost two months.
Zeinab al-Khawaja, the activist’s daughter, said on Saturday that her father's health condition had deteriorated and he had to be transferred to hospital.
Saudi-backed Bahraini forces have killed scores of people and arrested many more for participating in anti-regime protests that erupted in mid-February 2011.
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