Three Bahraini activists from the kingdom's largest Shiite group have been charged with inciting hatred against the Sunni-ruled government, their lawyer said on Sunday. The public prosecution accused the three men who edited a weekly pamphlet issued by the Islamic National Accord Association (INAA) of "inciting hatred against the regime and insulting it," Abdullah al-Shamlawi told AFP.
The three were also charged with "circulating information that fuels sectarian division, as well as damaging the law of order and security," he added. If convicted the men face up to five years in prison. They denied the charges and were released on bail, Shamlawi stated. According to him, two of the men were sent for forensic checks after they claimed they were beaten during questioning by National Security police on Saturday.
INAA MP Khalil Marzouq protested against the involvement of National Security officers, and said the case should be handled by the public prosecution office or the ministry of information. "If it has the right to become involved in cases related to opinion and publishing, that means we are turning into a police state," said Marzouq.
