Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa on Sunday ordered that 551 convicts have their nationality reinstated. King Hamad declared martial law, and hundreds of protesters were rounded up and jailed following mass trials. Many were tortured and a handful died of their injuries in jail, several human rights groups have said. As opposition groups were banned, many leading opposition figures and rights activists fled abroad, while those in jail were stripped of their citizenship. State repression continuesDespite promises of reform, Germany’s Bertelsmann Stiftung’s Transformation Index 2018 placed Bahrain 89th out of 129 countries for its political and economic transformation.

Source: Egypt Independent April 22, 2019 09:22 UTC