Islam Times - Bahrain Crackdown: Regime Convicts 51 People in Mass Trial

Islam Times - Bahrain announced Tuesday it convicted 51 people, more than half of them abroad, on alleged charges of belonging to a militant group. It was the latest mass trial conducted in this island kingdom amid a years-long crackdown on all dissent.

Besides, the Bahraini regime claimed that some of those arrested had targeted a bank ATM and a transportation company, while others allegedly possessed gasoline bombs and other items. The arrests took place last year, the statement said.

Of those convicted, the kingdom described 27 as “fugitives abroad." The suspects received sentences ranging from five years to life in prison, the statement said. One defendant was acquitted.

The statement named none of those convicted. The Associated Press could not immediately identify the lawyers who defended them in court.

The Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy said it spoke to a family member of one defendant who said “the trial was marred by due process violations and the use of evidence obtained under torture.”

“This mass trial demonstrates the systemic corruption of Bahrain’s judiciary, which routinely violates defendants’ most basic rights to a fair trial such as permitting evidence obtained through torture and denial of access to legal representation,” said Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei, the director of advocacy at the institute.

Bahrain is home to the US Navy's 5th Fleet. It has seen peaceful demonstrations since the 2011 so-called Arab Spring protests.

Bahrain targeted journalists, activists, Shia religious leaders and political parties as part of its crackdown on dissent. Some activists have escaped into exile while others have been imprisoned. Bahrain has carried out a series of mass trials during this time.