Amnesty slams Bahrain over treatment of jailed hunger-striking academic

Amnesty International slammed Bahrain over its treatment of a political prisoner on Thursday.

Sixty-year-old Abduljalil Al-Singace was described as an "unjustly jailed ailing academic and human rights defender" by the global human rights group.

He has been refusing solid foods for a year and late last month said he would no longer take health-stabilising salts in response to prison authorities keeping some of his medication from him.

"It is utterly outrageous to see how the Bahraini authorities have idly watched 60-year-old Abduljalil al-Singace's health deteriorate as he goes through unnecessary suffering, over the past 365 days of his hunger strike, during which he consumed only liquids," Amnesty deputy Middle East director Amna Guellali said.

"He has been behind bars for over a decade solely for exercising his rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly and should never have been jailed in the first place."

Guellali urged Bahrain's authorities to "immediately and unconditionally release" Al-Singace and "urgently ensure" he is given all necessary medication "without delay".

She called on them to ensure he has "access to adequate and timely healthcare" and is "protected from further torture and other ill-treatment".

In 2011, the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry documented abuses experienced by the rights defender, including repeated beatings and deprivation of his crutches.

Amnesty International has condemned Egypt for bringing charges against torture victims shown in videos where they detailed their abuse, saying that authorities were engaging in "appalling reprisals"https://t.co/xq7OHNtjpW

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Al-Singace, who is serving a life sentence and has several health problems, is currently being held at a Bahraini hospital.

"Bahraini authorities are continuing to punish Abduljalil al-Singace for his peaceful role in Bahrain's 2011 uprising," Guellali said.

"Not only have they unjustly imprisoned him, but they also unlawfully confiscated a book he was writing, prompting him to start his hunger strike.

"His work should be immediately handed over to his family," she added.