Bahrain’s highest court has upheld jail terms issued against nine medics – including Irish-trained orthopaedic surgeon Ali al-Ekry – convicted for their role in last year’s pro-democracy uprising, state news agency BNA reported,.
The controversial case has drawn international criticism of the US-allied Gulf Arab kingdom, which has been in turmoil since the protests led by its Shia Muslim majority were crushed by the Sunni rulers.
Bahrain, home base for the US navy’s fifth fleet, accuses regional Shia power Iran of encouraging the unrest and has promised a tough response to violent protests as talks with the opposition have stalled. BNA quoted attorney general Abdul-Rahman al-Sayed as saying Bahrain’s court of cassation rejected all appeals presented by the defendants.
In June, the appeals court sentenced Ekry, who worked at the Salmaniya hospital in Manama, to five years in jail and gave eight others prison sentences ranging from one month to three years. It acquitted nine others. Two medics previously sentenced to 15 years each did not appeal and are believed to be in hiding or to have left the country.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Six-One News yesterday, UCD Prof Eoin O’Brien accused the Royal College of Surgeons of not doing enough to support the doctors. He resigned his fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians in protest at what he believes is a lack of support for them.