“We reiterate our call for … release of all arbitrarily detained persons in Bahrain, including the Danish-Bahraini citizen Mr. Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja; a victim of torture and abuse who should be released for immediate treatment and rehabilitation,” the Danish delegate said in a statement at the 36th session of the UN Human Rights Council.
Al-Khawaja was sentenced to life in prison following the brutal suppression of Bahrain’s pro-democracy protests in 2011. He has been on a number of hunger strikes throughout his time in detention, protesting the degrading treatment of political prisoners in Bahrain.
Denmark also called “for the immediate cessation of reprisals” against Bahraini human rights defenders who are being jailed, tortured and banned from traveling in increasingly alarming numbers.
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