Rights group seeks US sanctions on Bahrain minister for torture of detainees Submitted by Sondos Asem on Thu, 12/18/2025 - 13:30 Human Rights First says Sheikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa has failed to take measures to end prison abuses US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem (L) is received by Bahrain's Interior Minister Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa in Manama on 25 May 2025 (Alex Brandon/AFP) Off A US -based rights group submitted a dossier to Donald Trump's administration on Thursday recommending sanctions against Bahrain ’s interior minister for his alleged role in torture in prisons under his control. Human Rights First (HRF), in a statement shared with Middle East Eye, accused Bahrain’s Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa of overseeing torture and other cruel treatment against political prisoners since 2011, despite Bahrain being a signatory to the UN Convention Against Torture. “Prisoners have been denied essential healthcare, sometimes leading to their deaths, and faced beatings to elicit confessions,” the group said. “The US State Department has repeatedly acknowledged such abuses. Leaders like Sheikh Rashid, who has been head of the interior ministry since 2004, have not taken meaningful measures to end the abuses happening on their watch or hold perpetrators accountable,” read the HRF statement. MEE has contacted the Bahraini government for comment on the allegations. In the periodic review this year by the UN’s Committee Against Torture, Bahraini officials defended their government’s human rights record and their criminal justice system. However, the committee cited in its final observations last month the “consistent reports indicating that persons in custody are subjected to torture or ill-treatment”, and that it was “deeply concerned at the reported lack of accountability, which contributes to a climate of impunity”. 'Torture and cruel treatment in Bahrain’s prisons have continued well past the crackdown on the country’s 2011 uprising' – Human Rights First “Torture and cruel treatment in Bahrain’s prisons have continued well past the crackdown on the country’s 2011 uprising,” said Uzra Zeya, president and CEO of Human Rights First. “US law requires that government officials involved in gross violations of human rights like these be barred from entering the country,” she added. “More importantly, signalling that the US government takes these abuses seriously would be an important step in pressing Bahraini authorities to protect human rights defenders and other prisoners, and to finally end their arbitrary detentions.” Legal threshold for sanctions HRF said longstanding concerns raised by senior US lawmakers highlight how Bahrain’s human rights record has strained its relationship with Washington. The organisation noted that figures in Congress, including Marco Rubio before he became US secretary of state, have repeatedly warned that systemic abuses risk undermining both domestic stability in Bahrain and US strategic interests in the region. Bahraini prisoners subjected to 'psychological torture' at Jau prison, says detainee Read More » In correspondence sent to the State Department in 2021, lawmakers led by Rubio and Senator Ron Wyden expressed alarm at what they described as violent repression by Bahraini authorities. They warned that such practices could fuel public resentment and long-term instability, with potential consequences for the continued stationing of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet in the country. The senators also pressed officials on whether sanctions – including those available under the Global Magnitsky Act, which sanctions foreign officials worldwide for human rights violations – had been considered against Bahraini individuals implicated in serious abuses. HRF said its latest intervention builds on those warnings. The group said it has submitted documentation to US authorities arguing that Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid meets the legal threshold for financial sanctions under the Global Magnitsky regime and for a mandatory visa ban under Section 7031(c) of US law, which allows the goverment to impose visa restrictions against foreign officials involved in “significant corruption” or “a gross violation of human rights” anywhere in the world. The organisation said US policy should move away from what it described as an illusion of stability sustained by impunity, and instead prioritise measures aimed at changing behaviour and securing accountability. MEE has contacted the US State Department for comment. Inside Bahrain News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0