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a prominent activist in bahrain A new hunger strike began on Wednesday to put pressure on the island kingdom, which has been jailed since the country’s 2011 Arab Spring protests and Europe His detention was criticized internationally.
Abdulhadi al-Khawaja began a hunger strike while in custody at the Jaw Rehabilitation and Reform Center in Bahrain, which supporters described as an “open-level” hunger strike. The 64-year-old activist, who also has Danish citizenship, had a previous hunger strike that lasted 110 days in 2012 – and now a doctor is warning the Danish government that al-Khawaja is already 10 kilograms (22 pounds) underweight and his heart condition may be worsening.
Dr Damian McCormack wrote, “Despite Mr Khawaja’s ability to tolerate severe malnutrition and dehydration in the past, my assessment is that his risk of death in a hunger strike of any duration would be high.”
Officials in Bahrain, an island off the coast of saudi arabia In the Persian Gulf, Al-Khawaja did not directly respond to questions from The Associated Press about his hunger strike. However, he argued that prisoners in Bahrain face “fair trials before an independent judiciary”, are “guaranteed their full rights” and receive care from medical teams that “act rapidly to advise on health risks.”
Human rights groups and United Nations experts have long described al-Khawaja as being arbitrarily detained after he was sentenced to life in prison by a military tribunal on internationally criticized terrorism charges.
Al-Khawaja’s effort appears to have been aimed at trying to put renewed pressure on Denmark to negotiate for its independence.
Denmark has spoken to Bahraini authorities about al-Khawaja for years, who insist that his imprisonment is justified and that he is a Bahraini citizen, subject to the laws of the kingdom. Al-Khawaja’s supporters also say that they want to put pressure on the European Union regarding his case.
The timing of the hunger strike also coincides with this weekend’s edition of Bahrain’s annual Manama Dialogue, a security summit. International Institute for Strategic StudiesWhich attracts world leaders.
Al-Khawaja lived abroad for years, including as a student in London before facing deportation for his activism. He obtained Danish citizenship through political asylum.
He returned in 1999 to Bahrain, a majority Shia Muslim island ruled by a Sunni Muslim ruling family, where Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa became the island’s ruler and later king, having initially promised to work more closely with the kingdom’s Shias.
Al-Khawaja helped establish the Bahrain Center for Human Rights and advocated democratic reforms.
However, Shias under King Hamad have complained for years that they are treated as second-class citizens in a kingdom roughly the size of New York City with a population of 1.5 million people.
Al-Khawaja has been occupied by Bahrain since the 2011 protests, which represent the largest demonstrations against Bahrain’s Al Khalifa royal family, which has ruled since 1783. Bahrain, along with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, suppressed violent protests. In the years since, low-level unrest has been prevalent in Bahrain, with Shia militant groups sometimes claiming attacks on security forces.
Bahrain hosts the US Navy’s Middle East-based 5th Fleet and the US considers it a major non-NATO ally. Bahrain also joined the United Arab Emirates in diplomatically recognizing Israel in 2020, during US President Donald Trump’s first term.