Bahrain gives powers to intelligence agents to detain dissidents

The head of public prosecution, Ahmed al-Dosari, announced in a decree on Thursday that officers, non-commissioned officers and members of the tiny Persian Gulf kingdom’s domestic spy service, the National Security Agency, were granted arrest powers “limited” to terrorism cases, the state-run Bahrain News Agency reported.

This is while the Manama regime has levied terrorism allegations against activists and pro-democracy protesters in the past.

Activists have condemned the move as the Al Khalifah regime’s disregard for human rights, warning that restoration of arrest powers to the spy service would subject ordinary citizens to regular abuse.

“Today’s decision makes it clear that Bahrain has turned its back unapologetically against human rights,” said Husain Abdullah, the executive director of Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain.