Bahraini activist wife denied visits in prison hospital

The wife of Bahraini human rights activist Abdulhadi al-Khawaja has criticized the country’s authorities for denying her the right to call or visit her husband in a prison hospital. Khadija al-Khawaja said on Thursday that regime officials do not allow her to see or phone her husband and only tell her that he is in good health. "They say he is in good health, but if that's true, then why won't they let me speak to him, why won't they let me see him?" AFP quoted her as saying on Thursday. She added the authorities had also barred her from visiting her daughter, Zainab al-Khawaja, who was arrested on Saturday after taking part in a sit-in, protesting her father’s ongoing detention. Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, who holds dual Danish and Bahraini nationality, was given a life sentence in June 2011 over accusations of inciting protests against the Manama regime. He went on a hunger strike early in February to protest against the life sentence he received. On April 24, Amnesty International’s Middle East and North Africa Deputy Director Hasiba Hadj Sahraoui said, “The Bahrain authorities’ delaying tactics are toying with the life of Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, who is on death’s doorstep as he enters his 75th day on hunger strike.” Amnesty International considers Khawaja a “prisoner of conscience, detained solely for exercising his right to freedom of expression.” The office of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon issued a statement on Thursday, saying the UN chief “remains concerned about the situation in Bahrain, particularly with regard to the continuing clashes between security forces and protesters which have resulted in more casualties.” Bahrainis hold King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa responsible for the death of protesters during the popular uprising that began in the Persian Gulf island nation in February 2011.