Bahrain jails politician for criticising Yemen war

Manama - Bahrain has sentenced a politician to five years jail term for criticising the war on Yemen through a statement and tweets.

National Democratic Assembly (Al Wahdawi) Secretary-General Fadhel Abbas found guilty by the court on Sunday for the charges of opposing military action that Bahrain takes with a group of countries to bring legitimacy and stability back to Yemen, hence doubting the political and military stance of the country in this regard.  

Fadhel was arrested on March 27 a day after a Saudi-led coalition launched air strikes against Houthis. He described the joint operation in Yemen as an 'invasion' and an 'act of aggression' on social media.

His jail term was announced days after a court sentenced opposition leader and General Secretary of Al Wefaq National Islamic Society Ali Salman to four years in jail on June 16 on charges relating to publicly inciting hatred, an act which disturbed public peace, inciting non-compliance with the law and insulting public institutions.

shamada@khaleejtimes.com