17th March - Master script
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BAHRAIN: BREAKING THE SILENCE البحرين: كسر
الصمت |
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TIME CODE |
PIC REF |
SOUND/SCRIPT
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NEW PRE-TITLE |
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Contemporary
GVs Bahrain |
COMM Bahrain is one of the most secretive
countries in the Middle East.[1] البحرين
هي واحدة من
أكثر دول
الشرق
الأوسط سرية. 1 And
also one of the most repressive.[2] ومن
بين أكثرها
قمعاً. 2 |
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EBTISAM
SYNC RE TORTURE He kicked
me really hard in my stomach so that I
wet my pants في
بادئ الأمر
ركلني في
بطني حتى أني
لا شعورياً
تبولت. |
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2020 Protests |
COMM But
protestors continue to defy the government… and have once again taken to the streets. لكن
المحتجين
يواصلون
تحدي
الحكومة.. وقد
خرجوا إلى
الشوارع
مرةً أخرى. |
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EBTISAM ON
STREET PROTEST ACTUALITY We demand
democracy… نطالب
بالديمقراطية... |
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2020
Protests |
COMM The regime does not want these pictures to
be seen… Or these stories of abuse – never broadcast
before - to be heard… لا
يريد النظام
أن يرى
العالم هذه
الصور.. أو
يسمع بقصص
الانتهاكات
هذه... |
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NAJAH SYNC I thought
about jumping out of the window. Would
people know that I’d killed myself because I
was being sexually abused? فكرت
في القفز من
الشباك. هل
سيعرف الناس
بأن نجاح
انتحرت
لأنها تعرضت للتحرش الجنسي
والاعتداء؟ |
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BILL LAW
SYNC These women
are enormously brave particularly … given that in these very conservative
societies to talk about it. هؤلاء
النسوة
يتمتعن
بشجاعة
هائلة.. خاصة
وأنهن
يتحدثن عن
الاعتداء
الجنسي في مجتمع
محافظ جداً. |
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COMM The Kingdom says it ‘maintains a
zero-tolerance policy towards human rights violations’. In this film we investigate Bahrain’s human
rights record - and ask whether the West’s support for the regime makes it
complicit in the alleged abuses. في
هذا الفيلم،
سنتقصى سجل
انتهاكات
حقوق الإنسان
في البحرين - ونتساءل
ما إذا كان
دعم الغرب
للنظام
يجعله متواطئاً
في
الانتهاكات
المزعومة. |
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SAYED AHMED
SYNC It’s been
going on for 9 years… And all
this time the international community has remained silent نحن
نتحدث عن تسع
سنوات مرت. وسط
صمت دولي. |
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Title BAHRAIN:
BREAKING THE SILENCE البحرين كسر
الصمت |
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COMM Millions of tourists visit the Kingdom of
Bahrain each year. يزور
ملايين
السياح
مملكة
البحرين كل
عام. They’re attracted by its shopping malls, its
night life...and its passion for fast cars…[3] تجذبهم
مراكز
التسوق.. حياة
الليل.. والشغف
بالسيارات
السريعة.. 3 But we were not welcome. لكن
لم يكن
مرحباً بنا. We had to film these pictures secretly. توجب
علينا تصوير
هذه اللقطات
سراً. We asked repeatedly for access and were
denied it. رُفض
طلبنا
المتكرر
للوصول. Secret
filming sync: it’s ok man, we don’t have to seem suspicious Even if they are coming, we tell them we are
tourists. لا تقلق,
ليس من
الضروري ان
نثير الشكوك
حولنا حتى وهم
قادمون. نقول
لهم اننا
سياح Nor are we alone. ولسنا
الوحيدين. Since the uprising of 2011, scores of other journalists have failed to get into
the country, along with NGOs such as Amnesty and Human Rights Watch.[4] فمنذ
انتفاضة 2011 ، أخفق
مئات
الصحفيين في
دخول
البلاد، إلى
جانب
المنظمات
غير
الحكومية
ومنظمة
العفو الدولية
ومنظمة
هيومان
رايتس ووتش.4 UN Experts have made repeated requests, but
they too have been shut out.[5] تقدم
خبراء الأمم
المتحدة
بعشرات
الطلبات بشكل
متكرر،
ولكنها
رُفضت أيضاً. 5 |
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ASTON:
BILL
LAW, Gulf Analyst |
NEW SYNC
BILL LAW The Bahrainis don’t particularly like
critical examinations of what they’re doing البحرينيون
لا يحبون
بشكل خاص
التحقيقات
التي تنتقد
ما يقومون به. as far as I any journalists who are deemed
to be critical of the regime وحس
علمي فإن أي
صحفيين ممن
يُعتبرون منتقدين
للنظام بأي
شكل، لا
يحصلون على
إذن بدخول
البلاد. in any way whatsoever are not getting access |
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TURKEY |
COMM Which helps explain why we’re in Turkey. وهذا
ما يفسر
لماذا نحن في
تركيا. We’ve come to meet the two women at the
centre of our story – a pair of unlikely revolutionaries. جئنا
للقاء
امرأتين في
صُلب
موضوعنا – ثائرتان
غير
متوقعتان،
هما Ebtisam al Saegh and Najah Yusuf. إبتسام
الصايغ
ونجاح
اليوسف. |
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ACTUALITY Oh yes… |
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COMM: They’re on holiday in Turkey – partly for
the sights, but also to get away from the long arm of the Bahraini law. جاءتا
لقضاء إجازة
في تركيا – للاستمتاع
بمناظرها
ولكن أيضاً
هرباً من يد العدالة
البحرينية
الطويلة. |
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ASTON:
Ebtisam al-Saegh, Human Rights
Activist |
SYNC
EBTISAM In my
country, I don’t feel safe sleeping because of the raids which
happen in the middle of the night I become
traumatised at night even now
freedom of expression is banned ad I hear
painful stories of people inside prisons لم
أعد أستطيع
الشعور
بالراحة
خلال النوم. دائماً
ما تحدث
الاقتحامات
عند منتصف
الليل. ذكرياتي
تنشط مع
الليل. حتى
الآن هناك
حجر على حرية
التعبير
أسمع أصواتاً
من داخل السجن. قصص
مؤلمة جداً . |
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COMM Before the Arab Uprising of 2011 both women
enjoyed normal lives as housewives and mothers قبل
انتفاضة
الربيع
العربي في 2011 كانت
المرأتان
تعيشان
حياةً
عاديةً
كربتي بيت
وأمّين. Since then both have spent time in jail and
say they have suffered abuse… ومنذ ذلك
الحين، أمضت
كلاهما
فترات في
السجن وتعرضتا
لانتهاكات.. |
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Aston: Najah Yusuf, Human Rights Activist |
SYNC NAJAH
YUSUF I know
Ebtisam because of her work on human rights our
suffering was the same .. this made us bond I get
strength from her. أعرف
ابتسام بحكم
عملها في
الجانب
الحقوقي. كانت
معاناتنا
واحدة مما
جعلنا نكون
سوية، فقد
كنت أستمد
القوة منها. |
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SYNC
EBTISAM She told me
about her story. I told her
this can’t remain untold. My goal is
that the torture rape and sexual harassment must stop حدثتني
بقصة ما
تعرضت له فأجبتها
بأنه لا يمكن
السكوت على
ذلك. لأن هدفي
هو ضرورة أن
يتوقف
التعذيب
ويتوقف الاغتصاب
ويتوقف
التحرش
الجنسي. |
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SYNC
EBTISAM When I go
to any country in the world I feel at rest. Going
around without someone following you. There is
time to contemplate, to see that life is beautiful. بالنسبة
لي عندما
أسافر إلى أي
دولة في
العالم،
أشعر
بالراحة
قليلاً دون
أن يلاحقني
أحد. وأرى
الحياة
جميلة. |
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COMM Our story begins in February 2011. تبدأ
قصتنا في
فبراير/ شباط 2011. Pro-democracy protestors were gathering at
the capital’s Pearl Roundabout and Ebtisam went to see what was happening. تجمع
متظاهرون مؤيدون
للديمقراطية
في ساحة
اللؤلؤة في
العاصمة،
فذهبت
ابتسام لترى
ما يحدث.. |
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SYNC
EBTISAM: There was
anger from the people, they felt that someone had betrayed them. كان هناك
غضب شديد من
المجتمع. شعروا
بأن هناك من
خدعهم. And hearing
stories about unemployment. There were many sad stories of Bahrainis who were
suffering and no one knew about them. كنت أسمع
قصص
العاطلين عن
العمل. كانت
هناك قصص
مؤلمة كثيرة
لبحرينيين
يعانون
الكثير ولا
أحد يعرف
عنهم. |
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COMM Najah Yusuf was also attracted to the
pro-democracy protests. إنجذبت
نجاح يوسف هي
الأخرى
للاحتجاجات
المؤيدة
للديمقراطية. Up till then, like Ebtisam, she’d never been
in trouble with the Government. حتى
ذلك الحين،
لم تكن،
كابتسام،
لديها مشاكل
مع الحكومة. |
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NAJAH SYNC There was a
stage The people
were all gathered there with very simple demands demanding
reform Bahrainis
citizens seek a simple life but because
of poverty they couldn’t find a job easily. Wages are very low. I felt that
it was my duty to do whatever I could do for them. If someone
says, ''I want my rights.'' I say
"I'm with you." كانت هناك
مرحلة، كان
الناس
متجمعين
كلهم. رأيت
أن مطالبهم
بسيطة جداً. مطلبهم
هو الإصلاح. حياة
المواطن
البحريني
بسيطة جداً. بسبب
الفقر
الموجود، لا
يستطيع
الحصول على وظيفة
بسهولة. الرواتب
متدنية جداً. شعرت
بأن من واجبي
أن أقدم لهم
أي شئ أستطيع
تقديمه. أنا
مع هذا
الإنسان
الذي يطالب
بحقوقه. |
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COMM According to the Bahrain’s government’s own
figures as many as a third of the country’s total population of just over a
million took to the streets over the coming weeks. Most were Shia, many of whom felt they were
treated as second class citizens.[7] And while Shia Muslims make up the majority
of Bahrain’s population, the royal family, the Al-Khalifa, are Sunni.[8]
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SYNC BILL
LAW They were
there asking for reform and of course the Shia has been discriminated against
and many of the demonstrators in the beginning yes were Shia but by no means
all. There were Sunnis engaged as well. لقد خرجوا
للمطالبة
بالإصلاح،
وطبعاً تعرض الشيعة
للتمييز
ضدهم وكان
العديد من
المتظاهرين
في البداية
من الشيعة
ولكنهم لم
يكونوا جميعاً
كذلك فقد
شارك سُنة
أيضاً. |
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COMM In response, the regime tried to split the Shia and Sunni protestors. ورداً
على ذلك،
حاول النظام
دق إسفين بين المتظاهرين
الشيعة
والسنة. |
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BILL LAW
SYNC The way to
break that up was to play the sectarian card was to say that this popular
peaceful protests .. the Iranians were behind it. طريقة
كسر ذلك هو
اللعب بورقة
الطائفية
والإدعاء
بأن هذه
الاحتجاجات
الشعبية
السلمية.. يقف
وراءها
الإيرانيون. |
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Sayed was
granted asylum in 2012 . |
COMM CAPTION: LONDON, 2020 لندن،2020 Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei lives here as a
political refugee. He considers the revolution in Bahrain to be
unfinished. سيد أحمد
الوداعي
يعيش هنا كلاجئ
سياسي. وهو
يعتبر
الثورة في البحرين
غير مكتملة. |
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ASTON: Sayed Ahmed AlWadaei, Bahrain Institute for Rights and
Democracy |
SAYED SYNC They own and control all of the resources of
the country. When I was
18 I was allowed by the ministry of education to leave the country to study
because I was one of Bahrain’s best students and I started my educational
journey in the Univ of Brighton and graduated in a degree in electronic
engineering. تملك
وتحكم وكل
المقدرات
بيدها. في سن
الثامنة
عشرة
تقريباً
حصلت على
بعثة من وزارة
التربية
والتعليم
لكوني كنت من
أفضل طلبة
البحرين. بدأت
مشوار
الدراسة في
جامعة
برايتن. وتخرجت
متخصصاً في
هندسة الإتصالات
والإلكترونيات. عملت
بعدها لعام
تقريباً في
بريطانيا
وبعدها في
نهاية أو
منتصف 2010 عدت
إلى البحرين. I worked in
Britain for a year and then in 2010 I returned to Bahrain. |
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COMM The following year, when the Arab Spring
reached Bahrain, Sayed was ready to join in. في
العام
التالي،
عندما وصل
الربيع
العربي إلى
البحرين،
كان سيد
مستعداً
للانضمام
إليه. |
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SYNC SAYED I spent
months trying to find a job. And it was difficult for me to find one. I was facing challenges Because without a
connection it’s rare to find one. أمضيت
أشهراً أبحث
عن وظيفة. واجهت
تحديات
واضحة،
الجزء
الرئيسي
منها هو عند
عدم وجود
واسطة تكون
الأمور صعبة. I was one
of those who was really excited for change in Bahrain so I participated in
the protests. وقد كنت
واحداً من
الشباب
المتحمسين
جداً للتغيير
في البحرين
فشاركت في
التظاهر. |
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COMM But the protestors’ euphoria didn’t last
long. لكن
نشوة
المتظاهرين
لم تدم
طويلاً. |
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COMM The Bahrain government’s powerful Sunni
neighbour, Saudi Arabia, helped put down the largely Shia uprising.[9] ساعدت
السعودية،
جارة
البحرين
السنية القوية،
الحكومة
البحرينية
في إخماد
الانتفاضة
ذات
الغالبية
الشيعية. |
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SAYED SYNC They
started shooting teargas. At the time I was sleeping in one of the tents at
the roundabout. I was stopped by the riot forces and beaten up. بدأت
بإطلاق
الغاز
المسيل
للدموع. كنت
آنذاك
نائماً في
إحدى الخيام
في الساحة. هجمت
علي قوات
الشغب وتم
ضربي بوحشية،
وحتى الآن
هناك أثر على
جبيني هو نتيجة
الضرب الذي
تعرضت له. This scar
on my head is from the beating I received. I ran home and blood was all over
my face and it was shocking بعدها
عندما عدت
الى البيت
كان الدم
يغطي وجهي. كان
الأمر
مرعباً
بصراحة. |
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EBTISAM
SYNC A state of
emergency was ordered in Bahrain[10] الناس في
حالة رعب. أعلنت
حالة
الطوارئ في
البحرين. 10
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COMM On the 18th March, the focal
point of the rebellion, Pearl Roundabout, was destroyed.[11] في 18 مارس/ اذار
، تم هدم
ميدان
اللؤلؤة
الذي كان
يشكل النقطة
المحورية
للتمرد. 11 And the prisons were quickly filling up with
activists.[13] وسرعان
ما امتلأت
السجون
بالنشطاء. 13
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COMM: Syed Ahmed, however, had continued to defy
the regime. لكن
سيد أحمد
واصل تحديه
للنظام. |
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ACTUALITY
SAYED ON STAGE… So we have
Sayed Ahmed Al-Wadaei who was
here on the 17th and witnessed the attack first hand You have
some photos to show Sayed
Ahmed: I kept them on my mobile phone |
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SAYED SYNC I was one
of the first persons to be arrested I was kept
in the detention centre for 28 days where I
faced some nasty torture أنا من
أوائل
الأشخاص
الذين تم
اعتقالهم. أمضيت في
مركز
الاحتجاز 28 يوماً. تعرضت فيه
الى تعذيب
بشع جداً. |
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BBC NEWS
HEADLINES The opening
grand prix of the Formula 1 session which was due to be held in Bahrain next
month has been cancelled تم
إلغاء
افتتاح سباق
الجائزة
الكبرى
للفورميلوا
واحد والذي
كان مقرراً
أن يجرى في
البحرين
الشهر
المقبل. |
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COMM Instead of holding the Grand Prix, Bahrain’s
international circuit was turned into a practice track.[14]This was the moment when the world sat up
and took notice. Internationally, it was an embarrassment. بدلاً
من إقامة
سباق
الجائزة
الكبرى، تم
تحويل حلبة البحرين
الدولية إلى
ميدان
للتدريب. 14 كانت
تلك اللحظة
التي انتبه
فيها العالم. كان
ذلك محرجاً
على الصعيد
الدولي. |
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BILL LAW
SYNC The Formula
1 has been there for several years .. they loved it. it was a big big
platform and people just had a very good time. كان
سباق
الفورميولا
واحد يجري
هناك منذ سنوات
عدة..
لقد
أحبوه .. كان
حدثاً
كبيراً
استمتع
الناس به. واستطاع
النظام
تقديم صورة
عن الحياة
الطبيعية
وكان
الفورميولا
واحد مفيداً
جداً في ذلك
بأن كل شئ على
ما يرام. The regime
was able to project this image of normality and therefore Formula 1 was very
useful for that because things are OK. |
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BICI report
was Nov 2011 |
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COMM After the uprising,[15] the Bahraini government launched an
Independent Commission of Inquiry.[16] It was made up of international experts.[17] بعد
الانتفاضة15،
شكلت
الحكومة
البحرينية
لجنة مستقلة
للتحقيق16 تألفت
من خبراء
دوليين |
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BILL LAW
SYNC There was
international pressure brought to bear on Bahrain. Principally from the
Americans, partly from the UK. Really a
first in the Middle East. تعرضت
البحرين إلى
ضغوط دولية،
بالدرجة الأساسية
من
الأمريكان،
وبشكل جزئي
من المملكة المتحدة،
كان الأول من
نوعه في
الشرق
الأوسط. |
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BICI NEWS
CONFERENCE NOV 2011 |
COMM
In November 2011 the Commission issued a
damning report:[19] في
نوفمبر / تشرين
الثاني 2011 أصدرت
اللجنة
تقرير إدانة:19 |
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Prof.
Mahmoud Cherif Bassiouni Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) |
ACTUALITY Our
investigation revealed that many detainees were tortured and abused – whether
physically or psychologically – inside detention centres. And
threatened with rape. أثبتت
تحقيقات
اللجنة تعرض
الكثير من
الموقوفين
للتعذيب
ولأشكال
أخرى من
الانتهاكات
البدنية
والنفسية
داخل محبسهم
والتهديد
بالاغتصاب .. |
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COMM The Commission said the Iranians had played
no discernible role in the uprising.[20] ذكرت
اللجنة أن
الإيرانيين
لم يلعبوا
دوراً واضحاً
في
الانتفاضة.20 |
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BILL LAW
SYNC They made
26 recommendations.[21] The key ones were about reforming the
police and the security services. قدموا 26 توصية. 21 تعلقت
الأهم منها
بإصلاح
الشرطة
وخدمات الأمن. |
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COMM The Bahrain government accepted the report
and promised to address its concerns. They said they’d set up an ombudsman to
investigate future human rights complaints.[22] قبلت
الحكومة
الحكومة
البحرينية
بما جاء في تقرير
تحقيق
اللجنة
المستقلة
ووعدت
باتخاذ اجراءات
تجاه
المخاوف
التي وردت
فيه بما في
ذلك إنشاء
أمانة
مستقلة
للمظالم
للتحقيق في
الشكاوى
المتعلقة
بحقوق
الإنسان في
المستقبل.22 But some close observers remained skeptical.[23] لكن
الشكوك بقيت
تساور بعض
المراقبين.23 |
|
|
|
BILL LAW
SYNC CONTINUED What the
report served to do was simply to enable the government to create a facade
behind which they carried out their repressive regime. ما فعله
التقرير
ببساطة هو
تمكين
الحكومة من خلق
واجهة تمارس
خلفها
نظامها
القمعي. |
|
|
|
COMM Over the following years, the protests were
largely driven underground – or abroad. في
السنوات
التالية،
دُفعت معظم
الاحتجاجات
إلى أن تجري
سراً أو خارج
البلاد. In 2012,[1] Britain granted
political asylum to Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei. في 2015 منحت
بريطانيا
سيد أحمد
الوداعي
اللجوء السياسي
وأسس معهد
البحرين
للحقوق
والديمقراطية،
لفضح سجل
النظام
لحقوق
الإنسان. 25 Sayed had spent six months in
prison in Bahrain, charged with attending an illegal gathering. The charges were later overturned, and he moved to London and set up the Bahrain Institute for Rights and
Democracy, BIRD, to expose the regime’s human rights record.[25] When the Bahrain royal family came to events
like this horse show at Windsor, he put on disruptive stunts. وعندما
جاءت
العائلة
المالكة
البحرينية
لحضور مناسبات
كسباق الخيل
هذا في
ويندزور،
فإنه قام بأعمال
للتشويش. |
|
|
|
SYNC SAYED
AHMED: Even now I
am in Britain, my continued activism is disturbing to the regime. حتى
تواجدي في
بريطانيا
واستمرار
نشاطي كان مزعجاً
بالنسبة
للنظام. ACTUALITY
CROWDS AT DOWNING STREET So when the
procession came to 10 Downing street to meet with the Prime Minister I was
one of these who took part in the protest[26] فعندما
كان موكب
الملك يدخل
إلى 10
داوننغ
ستريت
لمقابلة
رئيسة
الوزراء كنت
من بين
الأشخاص
الذين
شاركوا في
الاحتجاج 26 I threw
myself on his car and was stopped by the police رميت
نفسي على
سيارته وتم
إيقافي من
قبل الشرطة. |
|
|
|
COMM: Sayed Ahmed may have been physically safe in
the UK, but he couldn’t escape the reach of the regime. ربما
كان سيد أحمد
كان آمناً
بدنياً في
بريطانيا،
لكنه لم يسلم
من ملاحقة
النظام. |
|
|
This
happened in 2015 |
SYNC SAYED
AHMED I found out
suddenly through a statement that appeared for the Bahrain news agency that
72 people had their citizenship revoked and when I looked I saw my name
there.[30] علمت فجأة
من خلال بيان
صدر في موقع
وكالة أنباء
البحرين ،
الموقع
الرسمي
للدولة بسحب
الجنسية من 72 شخصاً. The
accusations were not clear - implying that I had acted against the interest
of the state. It meant I had no other nationality from that day till today. عند
قراءتي
للأسماء،
وجدت اسمي. التهم
كانت فضفاضة
جداً وليس
فيها شيئاً
واضحاً. تهم
بأن أفراداً
قاموا بأشياء
مخالفة
لمصالح
الدولة. لم
تكن لي جنسية
أخرى وهذا
معناه أنني
منذ ذلك
اليوم وحتى
الآن أنا شخص
عديم
الجنسية. |
|
|
|
COMM – After the 2011 uprising, Bahrain had changed
its citizenship laws. في
أعقاب
انتفاضة 2011، غيرت
البحرين
القوانين
الخاصة بمنح
الجنسية. As a result…[31]nearly a thousand Bahrainis were stripped of
their citizenship. ونتيجة
لذلك... 31 تم
سحب الجنسية
من نحو ألف
بحريني. They were said to have been serving “a
hostile state” or damaging the “interests of the Kingdom.”[32] وقيل
بأنهم كانوا
يخدمون "دولة
معادية" أو
إلحاق أضرار"بمصالح
المملكة".32 |
|
|
|
SYNC BILL
LAW It means
that you don’t have access to health care, you are not going to get a
scholarship for your children. you are not going to get a job, you are
basically thrown on the resources you have and your bank account might be
frozen. it is all kinds of things ...all kinds of ways which as a stateless
person.. your life will be very miserable and very very difficult. هذا يعني
أنك لا
تستيطع
التمتع
بالرعاية
الصحية ولن
تحصل على
زمالة
دراسية
لأطفالك،
ولن تحصل على
وظيفة وعليك
الاعتماد
على ما لديك من
موارد وقد
يتم تجميد
حسابك
المصرفي. كل
هذه الأشياء.. كل
هذه الطرق
التي تجعل
حياتك كشخص
عديم الجنسية
بائسة جداً
وصعبة
للغاية. |
|
|
|
COMM The Government of Bahrain told
the BBC: “All those individuals whose
citizenship was previously revoked and who are physically in Bahrain have had
their citizenship restored.” COMM Britain has remained a loyal ally of
Bahrain. طوال
كل ذلك بقيت
بريطانيا
حليفاً
مخلصاً
للبحرين. It’s a relationship that goes back decades.
Bahrain was a British colonial protectorate until 1971.[33] إنها
علاقة تعود
إلى عشرات
السنين، حيث
كانت البحرين
محمية
بريطانية
حتى العام 1971. 33 The two Royal Families have long been close. وتربط
بين
العائلتين المالكتين
أواصر قوية
منذ أمد طويل. Since the uprising of 2011 the British
taxpayer has supported the Bahrain authorities by funding a range of
projects, among them police training programmes in Northern Ireland.[34] منذ
انتفاضة 2011، دعم
دافعو
الضرائب
البريطانيون
السلطات البحرينية
من خلال
تمويل
مجموعة من
المشاريع،
من بينها برامج
لتدريب
الشرطة في
إيرلندا
الشمالية. 34 |
|
|
ASTON: Lord Scriven, Member of the House
of Lords |
SYNC LORD
SCRIVEN Why is it
that over the past 6 years Bahrain has had about 6.5 million pounds of
taxpayers’ money? لماذا
في السنوات
الست
الماضية
تلقت البحرين
6.5 مليون
جنيه
استرليني من
أموال دافعي
الضرائب؟ |
|
|
|
COMM Paul Scriven sits as a Liberal Democrat in
the House of Lords. He’s long felt that Britain’s relations with Bahrain are
too close. اللورد
سكريفن عضو
في مجلس
اللوردات عن
حزب الديمقراطيين
الأحرار،
ولوقت طويل
شعر بأن علاقات
بريطانيا مع
البحرين
أقوى مما يجب. |
|
|
|
SCRIVEN
SYNC It gives
Bahrain a fig leaf of respectability and a shield that is hiding human rights
abuses. يوفر
هذا للبحرين
ورقة توت من
الاحترام
ودرعاً يخفي
وراءه
انتهاكات
حقوق
الإنسان. |
|
|
. |
COMM In 2017, Donald Trump’s arrival as US
president came as good news for Bahrain. في 2017، كان
وصول دونالد
ترامب
لرئاسة
الولايات المتحدة
خبراً جيداً
للبحرين. ACTUALITY Trump: “Together we will determine the
course of America, and the world, for many, many years to come.” COMM Trump was hostile towards Iran,[35] which was covertly supporting elements of
the opposition in Bahrain.[36] كان
ترامب
عدوانياً
تجاه إيران35 ، التي كانت
بحلول ذلك
الوقت تدعم
المعارضة في
البحرين
سراً. 36 ACTUALITY Trump
“So it’s a great honour to have you and your representatives here.
Crown Prince, thank you very much.” كما
دعم الرئيس
الأمريكي
خصم إيران
اللدود، السعودية،
وهي مدافع
قوي عن
النظام البحريني. 37 And the US president supported Iran’s great
rival, Saudi Arabia, itself a staunch defender of the Bahrain regime.[37] |
|
|
|
BILL LAW
SYNC the signal
was very clear … get on… do what you want.. behave with impunity.. we are not
watching you anymore. It doesn’t matter. وكانت
الإشارة
واضحة جداً.. إستمروا... إفعلوا
ما تريدون.. تصرفوا
بدون رادع.. فنحن
لن نراقبكم
بعد الآن. لا
يهم. |
|
|
2017 |
COMM Soon protests in Bahrain were gaining fresh
momentum. سرعان
ما بدأت
الاحتجاجات
في البحرين
تكتسب زخماً
جديداً. That January, three protestors had been put
to death by firing squad, the first such state executions since before the
uprising.[38] ففي
يناير/كانون
الثاني، تم
إعدام ثلاثة
محتجين
رمياً بالرصاص،
وهي أول
إعدامات
تقوم بها
الدولة منذ
ما قبل
الانتفاضة. 38 They had been found guilty in what the government of Bahrain describe as “fair
trials”. أدينوا
بقتل ثلاثة
رجال شرطة في
هجوم بالقنابل. 39 of killing 3 police officers in a bomb
attack.[39] Their supporters claimed the confessions
were extracted under torture.[40] وادعى
مؤيدوهم بأن
الاعترافات
انتزعت منهم تحت
التعذيب. 40 Now, with the Grand Prix once again coming
to town, activists like Najah Yusuf expressed their
protests by using social media to post against Formula 1. الآن، ومع
عودة سباق
الجائزة
الكبرى إلى
المدينة
مرةً أخرى،
يستخدم
نشطاء مثل
نجاح يوسف، هاشتاغ
الفورميولا
واحد على
تويتر كمنبر
للتعبير عن احتجاجاتهم. عبر
نشطاء مثل
نجاح يوسف عن
احجاجاتهم
باستخدام
وسائل
التواصل
الاجتماعي
لنشر كتابات
ضد فورميولا 1. |
|
|
|
SYNC NAJAH: There was a
hashtag being used for the F1 race. “No No to
formula one and Formula blood”.
There was
an excessive crack down. There were
arrests. There were
death sentences. My cousin
Mohammed Radhi was sentenced to death during the
run-up to the Formula One.[41] كلا لقيام
سباق
الفورميولا
واحد. كان هناك
هاشتاغ كلا
كلا
للفورميولا
وفورميولا الدم. هناك قمع
مفرط، هناك
اعتقالات،
هناك أحكام بالإعدام. إبن خالتي
محمد رضي
محكوم
بالإعدام
وكان ذلك في
فترة إجراء
سباق
الفورميولا
واحد على أرض البحرين. |
|
|
|
COMM: A week after the Grand Prix, the Bahraini
authorities spotted Najah’s social media activities.[42] بعد
أسبوع من
سباق
الجائزة
الكبرى،
رصدت السلطات
البحرينية
نشاطات نجاح
على وسائط
التواصل
الاجتماعي.42 |
|
|
|
SYNC NAJAH: I received
a call from the police station in Muharraq جاءني
اتصال من
المجمع
الأمني في
المحرق. |
|
|
|
COMM Najah thought the authorities were after her
activist son. In fact, she was their target. ظنت نجاح
أن السلطات
كانت تبحث عن
ابنها الناشط
ولكنها في
الحقيقة
كانت هي
هدفهم
الرئيسي. She was summoned[43] to the Muharraq security complex and
questioned by men she believes were from the National Security Agency.[44] أُخذت 43 إلى
المجمع
الامني في
المحرق حيث
استجوبها رجال
تعتقد بأنهم
كانوا من
جهاز الأمن
الوطني. 44 |
|
|
OPTIONAL CUT BOX 82 |
NAJAH SYNC
He told me
to unlock my phone willingly or he will force me to do it.. I was
scared. Because my
son was here with me in the same complex and I have
another son who had been arrested. So I opened
the phone with him looking over my shoulders and took it then he
suggested to me that I work with them. I knew they
want me to spy for them I went home I was
mentally tired and now
what Do I work
as a spy? On my
family? My people?
No Impossible the next
day I went to the security complex[45] he asked me
what my decision was? إفتحي
هاتفك وإلا
سنجبرك على
ذلك. شعرت
بالخوف لأن
ابني كان معي في
نفس المجمع
ولدي إبن آخر
كان معتقلاً. فتحت
الهاتف وكان
واقفاً
يراقبني،
وأخذه. الذي حدث
بعدها أنه
عرض علي
أن أعمل معهم. هذا معناه
أنهم
يريدونني أن
أعمل معهم
كمخبرة سرية. عدت الى
البيت. كنت
مرهقة
نفسياً. فكيف
أعمل معهم
كمخبرة
سرية؟ على
من؟ على أهلي
وشعبي؟ كلا. مستحيل. في اليوم
التالي ذهبت
إلى المجمع. سألني
الرائد عن
رأيي في
الموضوع
فأجبته بأنني
لن أعمل معهم. قال
لي: هل تعرفين
ماذا سنفعل
لك؟ هددني
بأني سيفتعل أي
حادث لكي
يقتل أبنائي. I said I
won’t work with you He said do
you know what we are going to do with you He was
threatening to fake an accident that will kill my children |
|
|
Need to be translated |
COMM This is the first time that Najah has told
her story on TV. هذه
هي المرة
الأولى التي
تروي فيها
نجاح قصتها
لمحطة
تلفزيونية. We can’t independently verify her
allegations. لا
يمكننا
التحقق بشكل
مستقل من
ادعاءات نجاح. But they’re consistent with testimony given
by others to the Bahrain Independent Commission and subsequently to
international human rights charities and the United Nations.[46] ولكنها
تتطابق مع
شهادات أدلى
بها آخرون
إلى الجنة
البحرينية
المستقلة ثم إلى
جمعيات حوق
الإنسان
العالمية
الخيرية
والأمم المتحدة
|
|
|
|
NAJAH SYNC
continues so the
first thing he did was hitting me on the head I started
seeing darkness He was
hitting as hard as he could I was
screaming and then he
sat me down on a chair and he
started to harrass me to sexually
harass me[47] I thought
this can’t be true what is happening to me I told them
I want to go to the washroom as I went
to the washroom, i was screaming I am in the
hands of those who don’t have mercy أول شئ
فعله هو أنه
ضربني على
رأسي. بدأت أرى
ما حولي
مظلماً واصل
الضرب بكل
قوته كنت أصرخ بعدها
أجلسني على
كرسي وبدأ
يتحرش.. إعتدى
علي جنسياً لم أصدق
هذا الواقع
وأن هذا ما
يحدث لي طلبت منهم
الذهاب إلى
الحمام كنت أصرخ
في الحمام،
أنا في يد من
لا يرحم [NAJAH
STARTS CRYING] I felt like
I was a weak person I feel
weakness, insulted, humiliated instead of
a woman in an islamic society I thought
of jumping out of the window but no It would be
replacing one type of hell with another would
people know that she killed herself because she
was sexually harassed, abused and insulted شعرت
بأنني
إنسانة
ضعيفة شعرت
بالضعف
والإهانة
والإذلال أنا إمرأة
في مجتمع
إسلامي فكرت في أن
ألقي بنفسي
من النافذة ولكن كلا. هذا
هروب من
الجحيم إلى
الجحيم. هل
سيعلمون بأن
نجاح ماتت
لأنها تعرضت
للتحرش
الجنسي
والاعتداء
الجنسي
والاهانة
والاذلال؟ [NAJAH
CRIES AGAIN] The
interrogator was there with others threatening me with rape and he brought
someone wokring in the reception he
threatened me saying this person will assault you in front of
all of us here all these
people are witnessing my situation and they
are watching calmly, laughing and smiling enjoying
watching me suffer it was
something that gave them pleasure المحقق
كان موجوداً
مع بضعة
أشخاص هددني
بالاغتصاب
وأحضر رجلاً
كان يعمل في
الاستقبال وهددني
بأن يعتدي
هذا الرجل
علي ونحن
جميعا
موجودون وأمامنا
جميعاً كان
الجالسون
ينظرون بشكل
عادي
ويبتسمون كانوا
يتلذذون
عندما
يرونني
أتعذب كان شيئاً
يمنحهم لذة |
|
|
check date |
COMM Najah was to serve a further two years in
jail[48] for “inciting terrorism”, a charge she denies. أمضت
نجاح عامين
آخرين في
السجن. Each week, she was allowed to use the phone
for 30 minutes.[49] كان
يُسمح لها كل
أسبوع
باستخدام
الهاتف لثلاثين
دقيقة. On 8 July 2017, within weeks of the alleged
abuse, she called Sayed Ahmed in London. في 8 يوليو/تموز 2017،
في غضون
أسابيع من
الانتهاكات
المزعومة،
اتصلت بسيد
أحمد في لندن. |
|
|
|
SYNC SAYED The hardest
moment that I had as a man was when Najah talked to me about what she went
through. من
أصعب
اللحظات
التي مرت علي
كرجل كانت
عندما بدأت
نجاح تتكلم
معي عن بشاعة
ما تعرضت له. |
|
|
|
ACTUALITY
FROM PHONE CALL Najah: I am
nervous to speak about it. أخجل
من الكلام عن
هذا الموضوع. Sayed: You
need to speak out because if you don’t I can’t help you يجب
أن تتكلمي
وإذا لم
تخبريني
الآن فلن
نستطيع
مساعدتك Najah: He
put his hands in… أدخل
يده.. |
|
|
|
SYNC SAYED It was one
of the most difficult phone calls that I’d received أنا
كشخص، كانت
من أصعب
الاتصالات
التي تلقيتها. |
|
|
|
ACTUALITY Najah: He
was saying, “how many times have men ridden you?”…and he would put the
interrogator on speaker phone and would say to me “I want to ride you”. كان
يقول كم
رجلاً ركبك؟. . وكان
يتصل
بالمحقق
ويضع الهاتف
على الحاكي وكان
يقول سآتي
وأركبك. Sayed:
While he was saying this did he already have his hand? وبعد أن
كان يقول ذلك
كان يضع يده
عليك؟ Najah: Yes
he was already touching me. I kept
trying to pull my clothes down to cover me نعم،
كان يضع يده
كثيراً كنت أحاول
المسك
بثيابي لكي
لا يزيحها عني. |
|
|
|
SYNC SAYED The nature
of the attack was so violent that it destroys the dignity of the person كانت
الوحشية
مؤلمة جداً
لأنها تمس
كرامة وعفة
الإنسان. |
|
|
|
ACTUALITY Sayed: Did
you scream? Tell him to stop? هل صرخت
وطلبت منه
التوقف؟ Najah: Yes. نعم |
|
|
|
COMM
By now, Ebtisam Al Saegh had also emerged as
a vocal critic of the regime. She had a large following on social media. بحلول
ذلك الوقت،
أصبحت
إبتسام
منتقدة بارزة
للنظام
وتحظى
بمتابعة
كبيرة على
وسائل التواصل
الاجتماعي. In May 2017 she was called in for
questioning – at the same Muharraq Security Complex where her friend Najah
had been held.[50] في
مايو/أيار
2017 إستُدعيت
للاستجواب – في
نفس المجمع
الامني في
المحرق الذي
كانت صديقتها
نجاح محتجزة
محتجزة. |
|
|
|
SYNC
EBTISAM: This was
scary and frightening for me. The
interrogation rooms were very scary. Imagine
yourself in a dark room unable to
recognise people because it was so dark They were 5
to 6 men with
questions coming from many people; Two of them
close to me... I could feel the heat from their breath by my ear and the
other was standing behind me. كان أمراً
متعباً
ومخيفاً
بالنسبة لي. غرفة
التحقيق
كانت مرعبة
جداً. مرعب
أن تكون في
غرفة مظلمة
ولا ترى
الأشخاص
الموجودين
ولا ترى
ملامحهم. كانوا
خمسة أو ستة
أشخاص وتأتي
الأسئلة من
عدة أشخاص ،
أصواتهم
بعيدة
ومتتالية.ثم
يقترب منك
اثنان،
احدهما
بالقرب من
أذنك لدرجة
أنني كنت
أشعر بحرارة
نفسه، كان
قريباً جداً
مني
والآخر كان
قريباً،
واقفاً خلف
ظهري. |
|
|
|
COMM
We can’t independently verify her testimony either. لا
يمكننا
التحقق بشكل
مستقل من
شهادة ابتسام
أيضاً. But it is consistent with what has been
reported to international bodies.[51] ولكنها
تتوافق مع ما
تم إبلاغه
للهيئات
العالمية. |
|
|
|
SYNC
EBTISAM: It was a
scary situation for a woman. Any woman
around the world would feel degraded when their personal space was invaded It is even
harder for Muslim hijabi woman men are
supposed to respect us in Muslim society. كانت
الضروف
بالنسبة لنا
كنساء،
مرعبة ومخيفة. المرأة
اليوم تشعر
بأن كرامتها
تُسحق عندما يتم
التلاعب
بخصوصياتها
فما بالك
بامرأة مسلمة
ومحجبة
تتوقع
مراعاة
طبيعة
مجتمعاتنا الإسلامية. |
|
|
CUT |
SYNC
EBTISAM: I was taken
to a dark room تم
أخذي الى
غرفة مظلمة someone was
beating me on my head. تم
ضربي على
رأسي They sat me
down and one of them took a black blindfold and put it on me بعدها
أجلسوني
وبعدها أخذ
أحدهم عصابة
خاصة للعين
سوداء اللون
وأغلق عيني Then he
started yelling questions and punching and beating me. بدأ
يسألني
أسئلة وهو
يصرخ ويضرب He kicked
me ويلكم he kicked
me really hard in my stomach so that I
wet my pants في
إحدى المرات
ركلني في
بادئ الأمر
ركلني في بطني
حتى أنن لا
شعورياً
تبولت من قوة
الضرب على
بطني. I asked him” Does the king of Bahrain know
what is happening in this room? He punched
me again in my face بمزيد
من اللكمات
ضربني في
وجهي he ordered
me to stand and open my legs طلب
مني الوقوف
وفتح رجلي someone
held my hands from behind my back أمسك
يدي من الخلف
ورفعها الى
الأعلى He started
touching me while I was clothed and that was the first stage بدأ
يلمسني وأنا
بملابسي في
بادئ الأمر I said
stop.. you are assaulting me sexually and this is not allowed فكنت
أقول له: توقف،
أنت تتحرش بي
جنسياً وهذا
غير مقبول قانونياً it is
illegal and inhumane ولا
إنسانياً
ولا حتى في
أعرافنا ولا
في ديننا.. توفف. it is not
part of our religion.. stop! لم
يتوقف. كان
يحاول أكثر
وأكثر but he
didn’t stop and carried on more and more طلب
مني أن أذكر
له أسماء من
كانوا
يعملون في حقوق
الإنسان he asked me
to reveal the names of the human rights activists وهدد
بأنه يستطيع
أن يفعل بهم
ما يشاء he said he
could do whatever he wanted وقال:
نحن حتى الله
وضعناه في
درج وأقفلنا
عليه الباب even allah
we put him in the drawer and lock him inside ??? قلت
له أنا لا
أعرف شيئاً i said I
don’t know anything بدأ
بإنزال
سروالي وبدأ
يتحرش بي
جنسياً بإصبعه he took my
pants down and started assaulting me with his finger ويطلب
من الذي خلفه
أن يتحرش بي
من الخلف and telling
the guy from behind me to assault me from the back فانهرت
وسقطت على
الأرض I fainted
and collapsed to the ground كانت
أطول ساعات
حياتي they were
the longest hours of my life وكنت
في حالة
انهيار. I was
broken down. |
|
|
|
COMM Inside Muharraq Security Complex, Ebtisam
was allegedly being tortured and raped. داخل
المجمع
الامني في
المحرق،
كانت إبتسام تُعذب
وتُغتصب كما
ادعت. Outside, her husband was waiting for her. في
الخارج، كان
زوجها
ينتظرها. It was the first night of the holy month of
Ramadan and he wanted to take her home to break the fast.[52] كان
ذلك في اليوم
الأول من شهر
رمضان،
وأراد أخذها
إلى المنزل
لتناول
الإفطار.52 |
|
|
|
SYNC
EBTISAM: They told
me, your stupid husband he is
standing there with a sandwich for you We can see
him waiting on CCTV he
continued to sexually assault me. I wished to
die. قالوا لي: الغبي
زوجك أحضر لك
سندويجاً
وهو يظهر في
كاميرا
مراقبتنا
أنه يقف عند
الباب. واستمر في
التحرش بي
جنسياً في لحظات،
تمنيت الموت |
|
|
It was a 7
hour interrogation. See OCHR and ADHRB |
COMM
After seven hours Ebtisam was released. بعد
سبع ساعات،
أطلق سراح
ابتسام. |
|
|
|
SYNC
EBTISAM: When my
husband touched me I fell to the ground - unable to walk and I was screaming
with hysteria لمسني
زوجي حتى
سقطت على
الأرض ولم
أتمكن من المشي
وكنت أصرخ في
حالة
هستيرية. |
|
|
|
BILL LAW
SYNC These women
are being enormously brave in these very conservative societies to talk about
sexual assault. هاتان
المرأتان
شجاعتان
بشكل هائل
عندما تتحدثان
في التعرض
لاعتداء
جنسي... مع
الأخذ بنظر
الاعتبار
طبيعة
المجتمع
المحافظة
جداً. It’s hugely
difficult. They have
enormous courage to speak out and publicly tell what happened to them when
they were held in prisons in Bahrain. لديهما
شجاعة هائلة
للتحدث
علانية
وإبلاغ الناس
عما حدث لهما
عندما تم
اعتقالهما
في سجون
البحرين. |
|
|
|
COMM This is Muharraq security complex ,[53] where the alleged torture of both women had
taken place. هذا هو المجمع
الامني في
المحرق، 53 الذي
جرى فيه
التعذيب
المزعوم
للمرأتين. وكان يدار
من قبل
العميد طارق
الحسن. 54 It was under the authority of
Bahrain’s Chief of Public Security – Major General Tariq al-Hassan.[2] وكان
قد أرسل الى
ايرلندا
الشمالية
للتدريب قبلها
بعامين كعضو
في وفد
الشرطة
البحرينية.55 In a written statement to the BBC, the Major General said: “No evidence was found that proved any wrongdoing had occurred...I
entirely condemn all forms of mistreatment and abuse of authority…” Three years earlier, at British taxpayers’ expense, General al-Hassan
had visited Northern Ireland ‘to observe and discuss the range of reforms to
policing’ being undertaken there. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
COM Then in 2017 Tariq
al-Hassan accompanied the Bahraini Crown Prince as part of a delegation to
the United States.[57] في
2017 رافق طارق
الحسن ولي
عهد البحرين
ضمن وفد الى
الولايات
المتحدة.57 |
|
|
|
ACTUALITY: Trump: لدينا
تبادل تبادل
تجاري كبير. لقد
اشتروا
اشياء كثيرة. سمعت
بأن الرقم
هو تسعة
مليارات
دولار . هذه
زيارة رائعة
جداً ونحن
نقدرها. لقد
ربطتنا
علاقة طويلة
الأمد
وعلاقة
رائعة وستمضي
نحو الأفضل
فقط. We’re doing
a lot of business. I heard nine billion dollars is thrown about. That’s a
very nice trip and we appreciate it. We’ve had a long relationship and a
great relationship and it will only get better. |
|
|
|
COMM While Ebtisam and Najah were in prison,
Sayed Ahmed wrote to the British Foreign Office to report their allegations
of abuse بينما
كانت ابتسام
ونجاح في
السجن، كتب
سيد أحمد الى
وزارة
الخارجية
البريطانية
لإبلاغها
بالانتهاكات
المزعومة
التي تعرضتا
لها. In response, the FCO said: ردت
وزارة
الخارجية بما يلي: “The British Embassy in Bahrain is
seeking further information from the authorities concerning the details of
these cases. The UK continues to encourage the Government of Bahrain to
deliver on its international and domestic human rights commitments.” "السفارة
البريطانية
في البحرين
تسعى للحصول
على المزيد
من
المعلومات
من السلطات
في ما يتعلق
بتفاصيل
هاتين
الحالتين. تواصل
المملكة
المتحدة
تشجيعها
لحكومة البحرين
للوفاء
بالتزاماتها
الدولية
والداخلية
المتعلقة
بحقوق
الإنسان". No further action was taken.[59] لم
يتم اتخاذ اي
إجراء آخر. |
|
|
|
NEW COMM The UN was campaigning on behalf of the
women too. كانت
الأمم
المتحدة
أيضاً تقوم
بحملات لصالح
المرأتين. وكتبت
إلى الحكومة
بشأن مزاعم التعذيب. وناشدت
البحرينيين
من أجل: They wrote to the government about
the allegations of torture. They appealed to the Bahrainis to:
"إتخاذ كافة الإجراءات لوضع نهاية فورية للانتهاكات المزعومة، لضمان سلامة السيدة الصائغ بدنياً ونفسياً والحيلولة دون تكرارها".
“take all necessary measures to put an
immediate halt to the alleged violations, to ensure the physical and
psychological integrity of Ms. Alsaegh and to prevent their re-occurrence.” |
|
|
|
COMM Pause Ebtisam Al Saegh was charged with ‘using
human rights work as a cover to … provide... information and fake news
about...Bahrain to undermine its status abroad…’ أطلق
سراح ابتسام
الصائغ في
النهاية بعد
اعتقالها
لثلاثة أشهر. After
three months she was finally released from captivity.[60] |
|
|
|
COMM The Bahraini government declined the BBC’s
repeated requests for an interview. In a written statement they said: “The Kingdom maintains a zero tolerance
policy towards human rights violations… It neither practises nor tolerates the
torture or mistreatment of prisoners.” They said the Kingdom’s independent
oversight institutions had investigated the allegations made by Ebtisam and
Najah but concluded “there was no evidence to support [their claims]”. Despite the allegations of torture and rape,
the British Foreign Office continued to seek out partnerships between the
Bahrainis and the British police. رغم
مزاعم
التعذيب
والاغتصاب
هذه، واصلت
وزارة
الخارجية
البريطانية
سعيها
لشراكات بين
البحرينيين
والشرطة
البريطانية. This time at Durham, in the northeast of
England. هذه
المرة، في
درام بشمال
شرق إنكلترة. In July 2018, at the Foreign Office’s
request, Durham Constabulary announced a training programme for the Bahraini
police.[61] في
يوليو/تموز 2018 وبطلب
من وزارة
الخارجية
البريطانية،
أعلنت شرطة
مدينة درام
برنامجاً
لتدريب
الشرطة البحرينية.61 They sent a team to Bahrain to meet senior
security officials, including Major General Tariq
al_Hassan..[62] وأرسلت
فريقاً إلى
البحرين
للقاء كبار
المسؤولين
في أجهزة
الأمن، بمن
فيهم
طارق. الحسن. |
|
|
explain
“secure military base”? |
SCRIVEN
SYNC We should
be making decisions based on our relationship not just on trade not just
because Bahrain is a secure military base and strategic base for the UK but
also on human rights abuses and it doesn’t seem that’s happening. علينا
اتخاذ
قرارات
مبنية على
علاقاتنا
ليس
التجارية
فقط وليس لأن
البحرين
قاعدة
عسكرية آمنة
وقاعدة
استراتيجية للمملكة
المتحدة،
ولكن أيضاً
إستناداً
الى انتهاكات
حقوق
الإنسان،
ولا يبدو أن
هذا هو ما
يحدث. |
|
|
|
COMM Durham Police said the training was to
enable Bahraini officers to make better use of forensics in their
investigations. In a statement, they added that |
|
|
Durham
Right to Reply |
V/O ‘Officers...have made a number of visits to
Bahrain and met officials to ensure that the training programme is being
delivered in line with agreed standards.’ ‘We believe that our engagement with Bahrain
provides an opportunity to influence positive change and promote human rights
by improving the quality of objective evidence used by the police.’ رفضت
شرطة درام
دعوتنا
للمشاركة في
هذا الفيلم،
ولكنها قدمت
لنا هذا
البيان: قام
ضباطنا بعدد
من الزيارات
إلى البحرين
والتقوا
مسؤولين
لضمان إجراء
برنامج التدريب
وفقاً
للمعايير
المتفق
عليها. نحن نؤمن
بأن
مشاركتنا مع
البحرين
توفر فرصة للتأثير
نحو تغير
إيجابي
وتشجيع حقوق
الإنسان من
خلال تحسين
نوعية
الأدلة
الموضوعية
التي
تستخدمها
الشرطة. |
|
|
|
COMM The British Establishment’s links to Bahrain
go all the way to the top. تبلغ
علاقات
المؤسسة
البريطانية
الحاكمة بالحكومة
البحرينية
الى أعلى
مستوياتها Since 2011, Prince Andrew has undertaken 35
separate engagements with the Bahrainis, including three visits to the
country.[63] فمنذ 2011،
شارك
الأمير
أندرو ب35 مناسبة
مع
البحرينيين
بما فيها
ثلاث زيارات قام
بها الى هذا
البلد. 63 While he was Chancellor of Huddersfield
University, a role he’s recently had to give up, a degree programme was
created for Bahrain’s Royal Academy of Police.[64] عندما
كان الأمير
أندرو
رئيساً
لجامعة هدرزفيلد،
وهو دور تخلى
عنه مؤخراً،
تم إعداد برنامج
أكاديمي لأكاديمية
الملكية
للشرطة في
البحرين. 64 The course included lectures on “security
science, crime scene science and...investigative forensic psychology.”[65] وتضمن
المنهاج
محاضرات في "علم
الجريمة
وعلم مشهد
الجريم و... علم
النفس
الشرعي
الاستقصائي. " 65 |
|
|
MoI: “HRH
Prince Andrew and the minister also met the students attending the master
programme.” https://www.bna.bh/en/ArchiveDetails.aspx?archiveId=58351 |
SYNC SAYED Prince Andrew
is a personal friend of the King of Bahrain[66] In April
2018 Prince Andrew visited Bahrain.[67] الأمير
أندرو هو
صديق شخصي
لملك
البحرين. في
أبريل/ نيسان 2018 ذهب
الأمير
أندرو ي
زيارة إلى
البحرين |
|
|
See 10
testimonies of torture at the academy in 2017/18 gathered by BIRD; The Times, Feb 2020; |
COMM While in Bahrain, Prince Andrew met students
of the police academy.[68] أثناء
تواجده في
البحرين،
إلتقى
الأمير أندرو
طلاباً في
أكاديمية
الشرطة. 68 Where the regime is said to have carried out
torture against its opponents since 2015. التي
يقال إن
النظام
ارتكب فيها
التعذيب ضد معارضيه
منذ 2015. 69 |
|
|
See footnote. |
SAYED SYNC
In the same month Prince Andrew visited the academy
and went to this college the torture took place.[70] في
الشهر الذي
زار فيه
الأمير
أندرو
البحرين وزار
هذه الكلية،
في نفس هذا
الشهر، حدثت
جريمة. لا
أعرف حتى
الآن هل
تزامنت مع
نفس
التواريخ أم
لا. I don’t know if it was on exactly the same dates or not. |
|
|
|
COMM We wanted to know what due diligence had
been done on the Police Academy and whether it was appropriate for Prince
Andrew to visit it. His office told us: ‘Any questions around courses run by the
University and the role that a Chancellor plays would be a matter for the
University of Huddersfield.’ وجهت
بي بي سي بعض
الأسئلة إلى
الأمير
أندرو بشأن
علاقات
الجامعة مع
البحرين. ورد
مكتبه بما
يلي: "أي
أسئلة تتعلق
بالدورات
التي تديرها
الجامعة
والدور الذي
يلعبه
رئيسها هو
شأن يعود إلى جامعة
هدرزفيلد". Huddersfield told us a Chancellor takes: “No part in developing courses or choosing
partnerships for the University, as such, we can confirm that HRH had no
involvement whatsoever in facilitating nor developing this course.” |
|
|
|
SYNC
SCRIVEN What does
worry me...is that institutions, whether universities FCO or police… they
talk about due diligence but when you start to drill down .. due diligence
around some of those people you have mentioned who are seriously implicated
by the UN for human rights abuses .. if they had a robust systematic and
effective due diligence about human
rights they would never contract with an organisation like the Royal Academy
of Policing. |
|
|
|
COMM Sayed Ahmed has collected 10 testimonies of
individuals who say they were tortured at the Bahrain police academy since
2017.[71] جمع
سيد أحمد 10 إفادات
من أفراد
قالوا إنهم
عُذبوا في
أكاديمية
الشرطة
البحرينية
منذ 2017.
71 |
|
|
|
COMM In the light of these allegations, we asked
Huddersfield University to justify their course. في ضوء
هذه
المزاعم،
طلبنا من
جامعة
هدرزفيلد
تبرير
برنامجها
الدراسي. They said: قالت: |
|
|
Right of
Reply Huddersfield University |
“The course is part of a programme the
Academy has introduced to expose its officers to international police
experiences, improve their leadership skills and solve security issues
effectively.” "إقامة
هذه
البرنامج تتماشى
مع المهمة
التي دعت
إليها حكومة
المملكة
المتحدة.. In a statement to the BBC the Bahraini
government said: “The allegations regarding the Royal Academy
of Police are simply false.” The government also said it urged the
prisoners to raise “any complaint or grievance with the
relevant oversight institutions.” لإكساب
ضباطها
خبرات شرطة
دولية ورفع
مهاراتهم
القيادية
وحل القضايا
الأمنية
بكفاءة". |
|
|
ARCHIVE Her
correct name is Najah Yusuf See WGAD doc point 31 p.5 |
COMM Najah Yusuf, meanwhile, was still in jail. في
هذه
الأثناء،
كانت نجاح
يوسف لاتزال
في السجن. By 2019, the international calls for her
release were growing louder. بحلول 2019،
ازدادت
حدة
المطالبات
الدولية
بإطلاق سراحها. The
UN “called upon the Government to ensure Ms. Yusuf’s physical and
mental integrity.” الأمم
المتحدة "تناشد
الحكومة
ضمان سلامة
السيدة يوسف
بدنياً
وعقلياً." |
|
|
|
COMM NAJAH was finally released from prison on
the 10th of August 2019 – Her old friend Ebtisam was waiting
outside the gate. خيراً،
أطلق سراح
نجاح في 10 أغسطس/آب 2019 –
وكانت
صديقتها
القديمة
ابتسام
تنتظرها خارج
البوابة.. |
|
|
|
NAJAH SYNC When I saw
Ebtisam I felt hope. عندما
رأيت ابتسام
شعرت بالأمل. |
|
|
|
COMM Lord Scriven believes Formula One could have
acted more effectively on Najah’s behalf يرى
اللورد
سكريفين بأن
الفورميولا
واحد كان
بإمكانها
التحرك بشكل
أكثر فاعلية
نيابة عن نجاح. |
|
|
|
SCRIVEN
SYNC My view is ... you have been in this game longer than me... من
وجهة نظري ..
انت تتمتع
بخبرة اكثر
مني في هذا
المجال Unfortunately
after the lights went off, once the Grand Prix had been held, F1’s priorities
were the glam and the money and not human rights abuses. لسوء
الحظ، بعد
انطفاء
الأضواء،
وانتهاء سباق
الفورميلوا
واحد، فإن
أولوليات
الفورميولا
واحد هي
الشهرة
والمال وليس
انتهاكات
حقوق
الإنسان. .. هناك
مسؤوليات
أخلاقية على
عاتق
الفورميولا
واحد. … F1 have a
moral responsibility. |
|
|
|
COMM In a statement to the BBC, a spokesman for Formula
One said: “We
take violence, abuse of human rights and repression very seriously.” ذكر ناطق
باسم
الفورميولا
واحد في بيان
أرسل إلى بي
بي سي: “At all
times throughout this case we have engaged with relevant parties and made
proactive enquiries into Ms Yusuf’s situation.” طوال
هذه القضية،
تواصلنا
طوال الوقت
مع الأطراف
المعنية
وأجرينا
استفسارات
استباقية بشأن
حالة السيد
يوسف. وقد
قمنا بذلك
ضمن القيود
التي يفرضها
كوننا عملاً
تجارياً خاصاً
لا يملك
سلطات
التحقيق (من
حيث
الصلاحية والموارد
والقنوات
الرسمية)
لكشف كل
الحقائق بشكل
تام."
|
|
|
|
COMM Ebtisam and Najah are now free citizens. But back in Bahrain they have friends who
are still in jail. إبتسام
ونجاح
مواطنتان
حرتان الآن. ولكن
في البحرين،
لديهما
صديقات
مايزلن في السجن. |
|
|
|
COMM One of those is Hajer Mansoor, مثل
هاجر منصور. She’s the mother-in-law of Sayed Ahmed, seen
here speaking on the phone to her in prison. |
|
|
ASTON: Voice of Hajer Mansoor Hassan, Human Rights Activist |
ACTUALITY Hajer phone
call: I am
suffocating since the beginning of the month أشعر
بالاختناق
منذ بداية
شهر محرم. |
|
|
|
COMM
She was
detained for three years on terrorism charges which she denies.[73] إعتقلت
لثلاث سنوات
بتهم إرهاب
تنكرها..73 Hajer says that during this time, she’d
discovered a lump in her breast – but that the medical treatment provided was
inadequate. تقول هاجر بأنها هذه المرة، إكتشفت ورماً في صدرها - ولكن تم إهمال احتياجاتها الطبية.
|
|
|
ACTUALITY |
ACTUALITY
Hajer AND SAYED Ahmed N. In the
last visit the doctor said my lump had increased in size. في
زيارتي
الأخيرة
أخبرني
الطبيب
بزيادة الورم. S. But
there was no follow-up? N. No, they
didn’t take me to a follow up. While before they said it was a problem and
they should follow up. اتذكر
ذلك. هل
حدثت بعهدها
متابعة؟ كلا. لم
يوفروا لي
متابعة. قبلها
قالوا لي إن
هناك مشكلة
وأنا بحاجة
إلى متابعة. |
|
|
|
COMM In a written statement, the
Bahraini government told the BBC: “The claim that she has been
denied access to medical treatment is groundless...Ms Mansoor has at all
times had access to all appropriate health care.”
Amnesty International and the UN have both
campaigned for Hajer’s release. But neither has been allowed to enter
Bahrain. |
|
|
|
COMM According to the UN, the Bahrain government
did not address the legal basis for Hajer’s continuing detention.[74] وفقاً
للأمم
المتحدة: "لم
تُلبِ
الحكومة
البحرينية
الأسس
القانونية
لاستمرار
اعتقال هاجر ". |
|
Need
translation |
CAPTION FEBRUARY
2020 Bahrain https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile?gId=24768 |
COMM For now the demands of the protestors remain
unmet. حتى
الآن، لم تتم
تلبية مطالب
المتظاهرين. On the street, there are echoes of 2011. وتشهد الشوارع تكراراً لما جرى في 2011.
In February 2020, crowds gather after the
death of an activist, Sayed Kadhem Abbas, eighteen months after his release
from jail where he’d been sentenced on terrorism charges.[75] في
فبراير/ شباط 2020 تجمعت
حشود
بعد وفاة
ناشط آخر هو
سيد كاظم
عباس، بعد
فترة من
اطلاق سراحه. Like Hajer, he said he’d been denied
adequate medical treatment. The UN Commissioner for Human Rights took up his
case with the Bahrain regime – to no avail. وقد
تولت مفوضية
الأمم
المتحدة
لحقوق الإنسان
قضيته مع
النظام
البحريني – ولكن
دون جدوى. |
|
|
|
COMM RTR The Bahrain government told the
BBC that Mr Abbas had received “the proper medical care,
including regular appointments with a specialist’. And it added: “Bahrain continues to go to great
lengths to provide all those in custody with full healthcare and medical
treatment.” |
|
|
Street
protests |
COMM As the anniversary of the 14th
February uprising approached, protestors were on the march. فيما
تقترب
الذكرى
السنوية
لانتفاضة 14 فبراير/ شباط،
يخرج
المحتجون
للتظاهر. |
|
|
|
COMM Once again, Ebtisam is at the heart of the
action. مرة
أخرى،
إبتسام في
قلب الحدث. |
|
|
|
EBTISAM
ACTUALITY I am in a
peaceful demonstration in one of the villages in Bahrain we demand
democracy أنا
متواجدة
الآن في
مسيرة سلمية
في إحدى قرى البحرين
تطالب
بالديمقراطية |
|
|
|
SAYED SYNC what the
country has been through a state of terror and fear مر
البلد بحالة
من القمع
والرعب. نحن نتكلم الآن عن تسع سنوات ولاتزال الأزمة قائمة وسط صمت دولي هناك
عملية قمع
وقتل
وانتهاكات
ممنهجة وبغطاء
دولي تحدث
لشعب
البحرين
وتسع سنوات
من النضال
لازال هناك
آلاف
المعتقلين. its been
going on for 9 years and the
crisis is still ongoing while there is silence internationally there are
operations of oppressing and killing and systematic violations with an international
cover up happening
to the people of Bahrain
|
|
|
March 4th 2020 |
COMM But there are some rays of hope. ولكن
هناك بعض
بوادر للأمل. On 5th March, Hajer, Sayed’s
mother-in-law, finally got out of jail.[76] Ebtisam and Najah were there to greet her. في 5 مارس/آذار،
خرجت هاجر،
والدة زوجة
سيد أخيراً
من السجن... كانت
ابتسام
ونجاح في
استقبالها. |
|
|
|
ACTUALITY Welcome
back. My love My love |
|
|
|
NEW COMM The women remain determined to make their
voices heard. تبقى
النساء
عازمات على
إسماع
أصواتهن. Despite the risks, they believe that
speaking out will give some protection when they are in Bahrain. رغم
المخاطر فهن
يعتقدن بأن
التحدث
علانية عما
مررن به
سيمنحهن بعض
الحماية عند
عودتهن إلى
البحرين.
|
|
|
Dublin |
COMM Ebtisam has come to Dublin to gather
evidence she believes will support her story of abuse. جاءت
إبتسام الى
دبلن لجمع
أدلة تؤمن
بأنها ستدعم ما
روته عن
الانتهاكات
التي ترعضت
لها. She is going to be examined by a
humanitarian organisation – SPIRASI – which focuses on survivors of torture.[77] سيتم
فحصها من قبل
منظمة لحقوق
الإنسان
تُدعى
سبيراسي،
وهي تركز على
الناجين من
التعذيب.77 |
|
|
|
ACTUALITY Ebtisam in
Spirasi: It was my dream to receive this report and to have official proof of
what happened to me and I couldn’t obtain it in my own country.. I will fight
to get it in any country in the world till I obtain justice |
|
|
ASTON: Dr Nicola
Cochrane, Forensic
Medical Examiner, Spirasi |
SYNC Dr
Nicola Cochrane
It is a
devastating form of abuse. إنه
شكل مدمر من
أشكال سوء
المعالة. I think for
anyone of us .. It would be appalling . ...the challenge for us when we meet people after the events have happened are that those methods of torture frequently leave no evidence أعتقد أنه سيكون مروعاً لأي منا. التحدي بالنسبة لنا هو عندما نلتقي بأشخاص بعد وقوع الأحداث حيث كثيراً ما لا تترك وسائل التعذيب هذه أي دليل.
on one level you are bearing witness to her
description of events من
جهة فأنت
تشهد على
وصفها
للأحداث on another
level in providing a medical legal report helps that interpret my findings
... reinforce the veracity of her event which I would hope will be valuable
to her. ومن
جهة أخرى،
توفير تقرير
طبي قانوني
يساعد في
تفسير
النتائج
التي توصلت
إليها.. وتعزيز
مصداقية
روايتها ،
وهو ما أتمنى
أن يكون مفيداً
لها. |
|
Need
translation |
HIGHLIGHT
ACTUAL WORDS AGAINST REPORT Could add
extra sentence re “The
psychological findings are consistent with the alleged report of torture.” |
COMM Spirasi’s report does not prove
Ebtisam’s allegations. But it does support them. لا
يثبت تقرير
سبيراسي
ادعاءات
إبتسام. لكنه
يؤيدها. “Her psychological assessment demonstrates profound symptoms of
anxiety and depression ... supportive of a diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress
disorder … consistent with the alleged report of torture.” "فحصها
البدني
متطابق مع
وصفها للأحداث
ويوضح تقييم حالتها
النفسية
أعراضاً
عميقة من
القلق والاكتئاب". 78 |
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|
|
COMM Despite international condemnation of
Bahrain by the UN and others, the United Kingdom and the USA both remain its
loyal allies. رغم
الإدانة
الدولية
للبحرين من
قبل الأمم المتحدة
وغيرها،
بقيت
المملكة
المتحدة
والولايات
المتحدة
حليفتان
مخلصتان لها. The BBC invited the Foreign Office to take
part in this film. دعت
بي بي سي
وزارة
الخارجية
للمشاركة في
هذا الفيلم. Instead they gave us a statement: وبدلاً
من ذلك،
زودتنا
بالبيان
التالي: |
|
|
BRITISH
GOVT RIGHT OF REPLY |
V/O They said that while Bahrain’s independent
human rights oversight bodies ‘still have more to do, they have already
demonstrated their abilities and credibility including through the
prosecution of almost 100 police officers under criminal courts, accused of
human rights abuses, as well as 60 police officers who have faced internal
Ministry of interior disciplinary processes.’ "نحن نرحب
بالخطوات
التي
اتخذتها
الحكومة البحرينية
لتطبيق
مجموعة
واسعة من
الإصلاحات
التي أوصت
بها اللجنة
البحرينية
المستقلة لتقصي
الحقائق في 2012
ولكن يبقى
هناك المزيد
مما يتوجب القيام
به". حكومة
المملكة
المتحدة
ملتزمة بدعم
الإصلاحات
التي تقوم
بها
البحرين،
بما فيها
التي تتم من
خلال
التعاون في
تغييرات
تقدمية
للنظام القضائي
في البحرين
وأنظمتها
الديمقراطية. نحن
نؤمن بأنه من
خلال العمل
مع الحكومة
فقط سنتمكن
من تحقيق هذه
التحسينات التي
تسعى لها
البحرين
والمجتمع
الدولي. |
|
|
|
COMM It is now 2020. الآن 2020 On March 11... The Bahrain regime told the BBC that over a
thousand prisoners were locked up for “assaults and public order offences”. The opposition described them as political
prisoners. The following day, March 12, 901 of them
were granted a Royal Pardon. 12
prisoners remain on death row…[80] 12 سجيناً
سياسياً
مايزالون
يواجهون
عقوبة الإعدام
..80 Major General Tariq al Hassan has been
promoted to Lieutenant General and remains in charge of the country’s
domestic security.[83] |
[1]
Bahrain ranks 167/180 in Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index. The RWB entry says "ruled with an iron fist by the
Khalifa royal family, Bahrain is notorious for jailing many journalists,
especially photographers and cameramen", and notes that Bahrain often
gives life sentences to journalists on charges like participating in
demonstrations.
[2]
Freedom House rates Bahrain as one of the least free countries in the world,
giving it the status "not free" and scoring it 11/100 for political
rights and civil liberties. Link here.
Bahrain has one of the region's highest prison
populations, with 234 people imprisoned for every 100,000 (Saudi is 197, Qatar
is 53, UAE is 104). Although note that the US has a rate of 655. Link here.
According to the UN, Bahrain has 1867 police
officers per head of the population (England and Wales has 208, Kuwait 1065). Link here.
[3]
UN World Tourism Organisation says 4 million, source here (p22). Manama has been named the
Capital of Arab Tourism for 2020 (source). According to TripAdvisor: "Manama has some of the best
nightlife in the Middle East. Alcohol is legal here, making the city very
attractive to those who cannot drink legally in nearby countries such as Saudi
Arabia. Manama is also unique in that here, it is not uncommon for men and
women to intermingle." (source)
[4] Access denied: Database of journalists, NGOs and
UN members not allowed in Bahrain since 2011 till 2015 in this database.
Amnesty
Internationa,l 2019:
“Bahrain continued to
deny access to independent human rights monitors, including Amnesty
International, Human Rights Watch and UN human rights bodies.”
[5]
The source of these remarks is the ADHRB's intervention at the UN's Human
Rights Council last year (link). The latest UN Special Procedures
report (2018) states that there were been six communications sent requesting
access to Bahrain, without success (link). Human Rights Watch 2019 country
report on Bahrain states: "Bahrain has not responded to requests from UN human rights experts to
visit. The government effectively cancelled the visit of the special rapporteur
on torture in 2013, which it had earlier approved." (link)
[6] According
to the BICI the numbers are believed to have
peaked on 22 February 2011: “It is estimated that the number of demonstrators
at the CGG Roundabout reached its highest level on this day, especially after
the MartyrsMarch entered the area. Estimate place the number of people present
at more than 150,000.”See p. 88.
The higher figures are in the BICI where
they touch upon the MoI claiming the no. of protesters at 400k and 450k on two occasions.
21 Feb: “According to MoI and some media,
by 20:30 the number of people participating in this demonstration increased to
400,000, although many other estimates place the number at below 120,000, some
of whom were non-residents of Bahrain”.
2 March 2011: “According to MoI and some
media around 450,000 people attended this rally. Other reports, however,
indicated that the number of demonstrators did not exceed 100,000, some of whom
were non-residents of Bahrain and citizens of other GCC States.
Bahrain Ministry of
Information says its 2010 census counted a total resident population of
1.2m. This matches Tradingeconomics.com.
Seems credible on basis CIA world factbook
puts it tens years later at 1,505,003 (July 2020 est.). A third would be 400,000.
[7] 2013 BBC Report on the 2011 protests: “Many, but not all of the protesters, were Shia Muslims,
who make up the majority of the population in Bahrain.”
[8] Correct according to Beyond the Resource
Curse,
Philadelphia Press 2012, p.62
[9] Saudi involvement was acknowledged by the Nov
2011 BICI report:
“The involvement of military forces of
the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and neighbouring countries to contribute to the
suppression of a peaceful and popular revolution is an interference in the
internal affairs of Bahrain and has no legal justification.”
People will
ask, were they really summoned in or did SA weigh into their client state? I
think summoned is reasonable: The Guardian reported at the time: “The Crown Prince of Bahrain is
expected to formally invite security forces from Saudi Arabia into his
country today, as part of a request for support from other members of the
six-member Gulf Co-operation Council.”
According to NPR: “Bahrain's ruling family authorized some 1,500 troops from Saudi Arabia
and the United Arab Emirates to enter the country.”
[10]
According to state-run TV the King declared a three-month state of emergency in March
2011.
[11]
The NYT on 18 March 2011 reported: “The official Bahrain News Agency reported the change as a “face-lift” to
“boost the flow of traffic.” It was widely reported elsewhere in the
international media that day. e.g. Guardian.
[12] BICI report p.219 : Between 14 February and 15 April 2011, there
were 35 deaths that were linked to the unrest in Bahrain during that period.”
Thirteen deaths were found attributable to security services and 5 during
torture.
[13] Amnesty described how in 2011 “hundreds of activists... rounded up
and detained.”
BBC reported that “Overall,
the total number of persons arrested pursuant to the declaration of a State of
National Safety was 2,929. Of those, 2,178 were released without charge.” – so
only hundreds were imprisoned.
[14]
The 2011 Grand Prix in Bahrain was postponed to later in the year and
eventually cancelled
altogether.
[15] BICI: “Between 14 February and 15 April 2011, there were 35
deaths that were linked to the unrest in Bahrain during that period” see p.219
[16]
“The BICI was established on June 29, 2011 in
Bahrain pursuant to Royal Order No. 28 by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al
Khalifa...tasked with investigating and reporting on the events that took place
in Bahrain from February 2011.
[17]
According to ADHRB it was made up of a panel of international experts. These included: Judge Philippe
Kirsch Q.C., Professor Sir Nigel Simon Rodley KBE, Dr. Mahnoush H. Arsanjani,
and Dr. Badria A. Al Awadhi. Bassiouni himself was an Egyptian law professor.
His 2017 obituary stated: His work, both
academic and in his UN reports from war zones, led to the creation of two
international criminal courts. Rodley was at the time considered a leading expert in the field of international human rights
law.
[18]
November 2011: “We welcome today’s report
by the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI), which provides a
thorough and independent assessment of events in Bahrain since protests first
erupted in February,” the White House said in a statement.
[19]
Report was released on
23 November 2011.
[20] BICI p.387
concluded on Iran: “The evidence
presented to the Commission by the GoB on the involvement by the Islamic
Republic of Iran in the internal affairs of Bahrain does not establish a
discernable link between specific incidents that occurred in Bahrain during
February and March 2011 and the Islamic Republic of Iran.
[21] Correct.
[22]
According to Amnesty the King, at the time, “publicly
welcomed the report and committed his government to full implementation of its
recommendations.”
According to Human Rights Watch: “The Special
Investigations Unit in the Interior Ministry’s Office of the Public Prosecutor,
like the Ombudsman’s Office, was established following the 2011 brutal
suppression of mostly peaceful anti-government demonstrations. It is responsible
for investigating and prosecuting the criminal liability of security or other
government officials allegedly involved in the torture or cruel, inhuman, or
degrading treatment of detainees.”
[23] Bill Law reporting for the BBC in August
2013 was one of them.
[24]
Bahrain Grand Prix in 2012 was held 20-22 April.
[25]
UN WGAD report 7 January 2019: “He was granted
asylum in the United Kingdom in 2012 for fear of further persecution by the
Government of Bahrain. He subsequently co-founded the Bahrain Institute for
Rights and Democracy and continued to advocate for human rights and democratic
change in Bahrain, which resulted in the Government of Bahrain depriving him of
his nationality in 2015.”
[26] UN WGAD report Jan 2019: “The source
reports that, on 26 October 2016, Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei protested peacefully in
London against the visit of King Hamad of Bahrain to 10 Downing Street.”
[27]
Then PM Theresa May met with the King of Bahrain on 27 October 2016. They were photographed outside Downing St. On 29 October the Guardian ran a story that Sayed’s family
were prevented from travelling to see him. Sayed says this happened on 26
October 2016.
[28]
The WGAD report details this sequence of events in
October 2016:
“The source reports that, on 26
October 2016, Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei protested peacefully in London against the
visit of King Hamad of Bahrain to 10 Downing Street. Hours later, his wife,
Duaa Alwadaei, who was due to return to London from a visit to her family in
Bahrain, was detained together with their young son at Bahrain International
Airport by Bahraini security forces. She was interrogated for over seven hours,
during which government officers threatened her and her family, as well as the
family of Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei. She was reportedly released and permitted to
leave Bahrain only after international pressure and the intervention of the
Embassy of the United States of America.”
That she was
“briefly detained” was acknowledged by the GoB in a statement printed
by the Guardian, but not for seven hours: “Upon her departure at Bahrain’s
airport to her London destination, Mrs Alwadaei was briefly detained for
questioning, searched and released. At no time was she abused or mistreated by
authorities. It bears noting that the office of the ombudsman is available to
anyone who feels their rights have been abused and will open an investigation
into matters brought to their attention.”
[29]
According to Sayed: It’s my mother in law: Hajer Mansoor
(released today 5 March 2020) Hajer was arrested on 5 March 2017. My brother in
law, Sayed Nizar Alwadaei, arrested on 2 March 2017, Currently serving 11 years
My wife’s cousin, Mahmood Marzooq, arrested on 2 March 2017, sentenced to 3
years and one month, due to be released by the end of this month. Their arrests
and detainment are covered in the 2019 WGAD report and by Amnesty.
[30]
According to Reuters this happened in Jan 2015.
Corroborates with the Jan 2019 WGAD report: “In 2015, the Government of
Bahrain reportedly stripped him of his citizenship, rendering him stateless.”
[31]
“July 2014 amendments to Bahrain’s
citizenship laws will grant the Interior Ministry additional authority to
revoke citizenship of people who fail in their “duty of loyalty” to the state,
a vaguely worded provision that could be used against government critics,” Human Rights Watch
[32] Reuters: “Since the protests it has prosecuted hundreds of activists
in mass trials, banned the main opposition groups and revoked citizenship from
around 1,000 nationals.”
[33]
That Bahrain was a British protectorate until 1971 was acknowledged in a Foreign Affairs
Select Committee
report.
[34]
Training delivered by NI-CO did not span four
years. Various delegations and courses were run by NI-CO for the Bahrain police
from April 2014 - September 2015. See page 10 of Reprieve
report.
[35]
See BBC report 22 May 2017: “Antipathy towards Iran is the one thing that Washington's
disparate allies in the region agree upon. So bashing Tehran has been a
prominent theme for Mr Trump both in Saudi Arabia and now in Israel.”
[36] The US Congressional Research Service states
that there are small but violent underground groups in Bahrain linked to Iran,
the most prominent are the Al-Ashtar Brigades (AAB). It has claimed
responsibility for 20 bombings against state security personnel. The US
government has designated the group as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation. The US
government assert that these groups are armed and supported by the IRGC Quds
force.
[37]
Trump and King seal arms deal May 2017.
[38]
According to the Guardian: “Abbas al-Samea, 27, Sami Mushaima, 42,
and Ali al-Singace, 21….State
news agency BNA said the men were executed by firing squad.”
[39]
The three men were “convicted of killing an Emirati
police officer and two Bahraini police officers in a 2014 bomb attack were
executed.”
“The executions of
the three men...are the first since a 2011 uprising, led by the Shia majority,
calling for greater political rights.”
[40]
At the time the head of Reprieve said: The death
sentences handed to the three men, she added, "were based on 'confessions'
extracted through torture, and the trial an utter sham"
[41]
Sayed has confirmed he was sentenced to death in early 2017. His death sentence
was announced in a court document issued at the end of March that year and seen
by BIRD.
[42]
The Bahrain Grand Prix in 2017 ran 14-16 April. The 13 September WGAD report notes that “The
source reports that on 23 April 2017, at around 8.00 a.m., Ms. Yusuf was
summoned along with her 14-year-old son to the Criminal Investigation
Directorate.”
[43]
Can we say She was summoned to the
police station - not taken. This is on the basis of the WGAD report. “The
source reports that on 23 April 2017, at around 8.00 a.m., Ms. Yusuf was
summoned.”
[44]
According to the WGAD report: “The source reports that on
23 April 2017, at around 8.00 a.m., Ms. Yusuf was summoned along with her
14-year-old son to the Criminal Investigation Directorate so that he could be
interrogated in relation to charges of “illegal gathering” and rioting….According
to the information received, the agency that led the interrogation was more
than likely the National Security Agency.”
[45]
The WGAD report also alleges her return the next day: “On 24 April 2017, at
around 8.00 a.m., Ms. Yusuf reportedly returned to the Muharraq police
station.”
[46]
She didn’t testify the abuse to BICI – that was in 2011. For Najah its just the
UN’s WGADa and BIRD, possibly ADHRB. Ebtisam was interviewed by Amnesty days
after the abuse and we also have her Spirasi report.
[47]
According to WGAD the sexual assault occurred during the interrogation on 24
April.
[48]
She was released on 10th August 2019.
[49]
According to Sayed the 30 minutes phone time a week is stated in this source by
the National Institution
for Human Rights.
[50] In
July 2017 UN Human Rights Officer of the High
Commissioner alleges “on 26 May, Ms.
Alsaegh was subjected to a seven-hour interrogation by officers of the National
Security Agency, during which she was kept blindfolded and forced to stand up,
while reportedly being beaten all over her body and sexually assaulted.”
[51]
Sima Watling from Amnesty International told us she interviewed Ebtisam just
days after the 26 May and was told of the abuses. We also have the Spirasi
report for Ebtisam which concludes her mental symptoms at the time of
examination were consistent with her claims re 2017.
[52]
The first night of Ramadan in 2017 was 26 May.
[53]
See British Complicity Research document which concludes: We can
reasonably say that the abuses were perpetrated by NSA officers in the police station which Fawaz oversees,
and where Tariq has claimed he has complete oversight of operations. Security
Complext and Police Station are used interchangeably in open source. Mazen
confirmed “They oversee that
building…it is officially a Ministry of Interior Building, and yup it is a
police station that acts as a main police station of Muharraq island so all the
top ranking officers for that area operate there.”
[54]
According
to Vice in April 2018: “He is ultimately in charge of
Muharraq police station, where activists say they have been electrocuted and
sexually assaulted during interrogations. (There is no suggestion that the
Brigadier is personally involved in any abuse, or sanctions any such abuse.)”
Our own research
found that in 2017 Fawaz was in charge of Muharraq Police Governorate and
therefore the head of Muharraq police station. The 2019 ADRB report notes the Muharraq Police Director General as
Brigadier Fawaz Hassan Al-Hassan. In a 2016 MoI report he was described as having the same role: “Director-General of the Muharraq
Governorate Police Brigadier Fawaz Al Hassan.”
[55]
The Vice journalist Phil Miller shared with us an FOI release from NI-CO dated
28 October 2016 which detailed that Colonel Fawaz Hasan Alhasan was a delegate
on a week long study visit to Northern Ireland in August 2015. The fact the TWO
brothers were beneficiaries of NiCO study visits was acknowledged in an email
from NICO’s CEO to TLS: “I can confirm that under the FCO funded programme in
Bahrain that the Al Hassan brothers were part of short, separate study visits
to Northern Ireland in 2014 and 2015 respectively.”
[56]
Major General Tariq Al Hassan is widely documented as Bahrain’s Chief of Public
Security in sources from 2012 to present date. The ADRB report with the
organigram on illustrates the chain of command with the head of Muharraq
answering to Major Gen Tariq Al Hassan.
[57]
This is according to the Crown Prince media
centre:he
travelled to meet Trump in November 2017 and wa accompanied by the Chief of
Public Security Major General Tariq Al Hasan.
[58]
Sayed Ahmed has shared with us an email to the FCO sent on 14 July 2017 which
they responded to on the same day: “The British Embassy in Bahrain is seeking
further information from the authorities concerning the details of these cases.
The UK continues to encourage the Government of Bahrain to deliver on its
international and domestic human rights commitments. We also encourage those
with concerns about treatment in detention to report these to the Ministry of
Interior Ombudsman.”
Najar
and Ebtisam were both in Isa Town prison according to Sayed’s email to FCO.. Najah was released on in August 2019, and Ebtisam in October 2019.
[59]
We have put this to the FCO in our ROR letter and await a response.
[60]
According to the UN she was detained on 4 July, then
according to Amnesty charged with terrorism offences and
released on 22 October 2017.
[61]
Announcing the training contract in July 2018, Durham Constabulary said the “Agreement has been developed at the request of the
Foreign and Commonwealth Office, to support wider British aims in the region.” This
training is on-going. Durham disclosed in an FOI response the training under
the July 2018 contract runs from April 2019 – August 2021.
[62]
According to a MoI report the Durham officers met with Tariq and Fawaz
[again Fawaz not cited in name]: “The Durham Police delegation from the UK, on
a visit to Bahrain, has met Chief of Public Security Major-General Tariq Al
Hassan…During its second and last day of the visit, the delegation visited the Muharraq Governorate Police, where it was
welcomed by the Director-General of the police district and some officers.
The officials were briefed on the role of the community police and the Family
Protection Office.”
Mazen has confirmed Fawaz is in the picture,
so Durham delegates met with both Tariq and Fawaz.
Vice noted that Pictured among the smiling bobbies is Brigadier Fawaz
Hassan Al Hassan, a Bahraini police officer who has trained in the UK, visiting Belfast in 2015 for
a week-long course in "command and control".
[63]
Based on Court Circular records - search for “Bahrain” under Duke of York’s
activities from February 2011 to present. The engagements are laid out in the
spreadsheet in Huddersfield folder in Drive.The visits to Bahrain were in Jan
2014; April 2018 and March 2019.
[64]
Prince Andrew became Vice Chancellor of
Huddersfield University in 2015 and was forced to step down in November 2019. The university announced the new MsC in 2018.
[65]
Modules disclosed by university press officer: “Investigative Forensic
Psychology for the Study of Criminal Behaviour; Investigative Forensic Psychology
for Legal and Investigative Processes; Organised and International Crime;
Terrorism and Conflict Resolution; Research Methods in Security Science; Cyber-crime and Forensics Awareness; Crime Scene Science Awareness; Quality and Presentation of
Evidence”
[66]
Andrew visited his residence in London at the end of 2011. A number of his
official Bahrain engagements include
personal meetings with the King and Crown Prince. He visited the King at his
residence in London in December 2011. The official visits are marked with
dinners or lunches with the King. Andrew and the King would also see one
another at larger events not recorded in the Bahrain-related items in the Court
Circular, like the Queen’s birthday celebrations and the horse show.
[67]
According to the Court Circular: he arrived in Manama 4 April 2018.
He met with the students on 5 April 2018: The Duke of York this afternoon
called upon Lieutenant General Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa (Minister of
Interior of the Kingdom of Bahrain) at the Diwan Fort. His Royal Highness,
Chancellor, subsequently visited the University of Huddersfield at the Diwan
Fort.
[68] Min of Interior, 5 April 2018: “Prince
Andrew and HE the Interior Minister also met the students attending the
Master’s programme.”
[69] The Times reported on 8 February 2018: “The Royal Academy
of Policing has served as a hub for the interrogation and coerced confessions
of Bahraini opposition activists since 2015, according to accounts gathered
from torture survivors.”
We were told by Sayed that since the
second half of 2015 the site of the Royal Academy of Police in Bahrain has
increasingly been used as a site for interrogations where torture takes place.
He says the people being tortured at the academy are imprisoned in Building 15
in Jau Prison and that they are taken to the academy for interrogations. Both
sites are identifiable on Google Earth as 700m away from one another.
[70] According to the testimony of Hasan Muhamed
Hasan Ali Fadel, “During April 2018, I was taken again to the Academy for
interrogation, where I was stripped naked and sexually assaulted.”
[71]
According to BIRD: “These testimonies
were handwritten in Arabic and smuggled to a contact who relayed them to BIRD’s
Director of Advocacy, Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei, in January 2020.”
One
of the testimonies in the main document doesn’t refer to when exactly he stayed
at the academy, and his date of arrest is listed 16-5-2013. However BIRD has
given us a witness statement from another individual arrested in May 2017 and
detained until January 2018. He described being kicked and humiliated during
interrogations at the academy.
[72]
ROR from F1 to Chris Mitchell, 6 March 2020: “We have always been
clear with all race promoters and Governments with which we deal worldwide,
including Bahrain, that we take violence, abuse of human rights and repression
very seriously. We have explained in
correspondence to Lord Scriven that we would be raising the United Nations
Working Group on Arbitrary Detention’s report directly with the Bahrain
authorities. We have done this. At all
times throughout this case we have engaged with relevant parties and made
proactive enquiries into Ms Yusuf’s situation. We have done this within the constraints of
being a private business, without the powers of investigation (in terms of
authority, resource and official channels) to fully uncover all the facts.”
[73] Amnesty: “Hajer was
imprisoned for three years on absurd ‘terrorism’ charges, solely because of her
family relationship with Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei, a human rights activist who now
lives in the United Kingdom.”
[74] WGAD 1st November 2019: “We thank your Excellency’s Government
for its responses received on 25 April 2017 and 12 March 2019, but regret that
they do not address the legal basis for the ongoing detention of Ms. Mansoor
Hasan.”
[75] ADHRB: “3 February
2020 – Today, hundreds of Bahrainis took to the streets to mourn Sayed Kadhem
Abbas, a 24 year old former political prisoner who tragically died from
terminal cancer following egregious medical negligence during his detention in
Jau Prison between 2015 and 2018.”
[76] Amnesty reported on her release on Thursday
5 March 2020.
[77] Crunchbase: “SPIRASI is a humanitarian,
intercultural, non-governmental organisation that works with asylum seekers, refugees
and other disadvantaged migrant groups, with special concern for survivors of
torture. In partnership with others, SPIRASI enables access to specialist
services to promote the well-being of the human person, and encourages
self-reliance...”
CatholicIreland.net “Since it was founded by the
Spiritan congregation in 1999, SPIRASI has provided rehabilitative supports to
over 4,500 survivors of torture from over 100 different countries.”
[78]
See report saved in Research Docs in Google Drive.
See
Conclusion: “Her physical examination is
consistent with her account of events and her psychological assessment
demonstrates profound symptoms of anxiety and depression and features
supportive of a diagnosis of Post Traumatic Stress disorder. The psychological
findings are consistent with the alleged report of torture.”
[79]
Bahrainrights.org provided 5000 in an email.. The source for this seems to be
the Bahrain Centre for Dialogue and Tolerance, run by a Shia cleric, or Jalal
Firouz, a former Bahraini MP. It has been reported largely in the Iranian press
(Press TV and the official Iranian news agency IRNA). It's difficult to
determine the exact number of political prisoners in Bahrain. But 5,000 number
doesn't seem unrealistic -- the FT said in 2018 that 3,000 people are
estimated to imprisoned for taking part in demonstrations. The Economist claimed in Jan 2017: “More than
2,600 political prisoners are in jail, a large number in a kingdom of just
650,000 people.”
And
that Amnesty has told us “we not have a confirmed number of political
prisoners in Bahrain.”
[80]
According to BIRD in an email from Reprieve to Manisha: “12 are in custody, 8
of them exhausted legal remedies. Additional 7 sentenced to death but in
exile.”
[81]
See detailed workings up to July 2019 provided by BIRD in spreadsheet saved
down in Stats. This spreadsheet is supported with online references. Sayed has
confirmed no further developments since July 2019. He says do not describe
these stateless people as political prisoners, some people had citizenship
revoked for non-political reasons.
[82] The Ministry of Interior announced on 24 December 2019 that “Southern Governor Shaikh Khalifa
bin Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa received the Commander of the Royal Academy of Police Brigadier Fawaz Al-Hassan. His
Highness congratulated him on his appointment as the Commander of the Academy.”
The appointment was also announced 4 December 2019 by the Bahrain News Agency: “Brigadier Fawaz Hassan
Essa Al Hassan has been appointed as Commandant of the Royal Police Academy in
the rank of general director.”
On 18 February 2020, the most
recent open source report related to Fawaz, BNA reported on induction
day at the academy. Here he is described
as “Brigadier-General” as opposed to just Brigadier.
His exact title should be confirmed in the ROR.
[83]
As of 3 March Tariq is described as: “Chief of Public
Security, Major-General Tariq Al Hassan” by the BNA.
[84] F1 currently have the intention of running a 2020 race on 20-22
March.
[1] From the UN WGAD report: “According to the source, he
was granted asylum in the United Kingdom in 2012 for fear of further
persecution by the Government of Bahrain. He subsequently co-founded the
Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy and continued to advocate for human
rights and democratic change in Bahrain, which resulted in the Government of
Bahrain depriving him of his nationality in 2015.”
[2] We were told by Mazen in a phone call on 12 March
that Tariq is second in command MoI and the Security Complex is a MoI building.
That the public entrance to the building is the police station.