Pope Francis to Visit Bahrain – a center of human repression and one-family rule

Public displays of friendly co-existence with some religions does not absolve a dictator of his repression and harassment of others. Pope Francis is traveling next month to Bahrain to visit the Catholic community living there and where the religious majority of that country’s citizens are purposely kept down through religious discrimination, harassment, and by force. Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain calls on Pope Francis to reconsider this visit due to the rampant discrimination against Shia in Bahrain or to raise attention to these violations if he chooses to follow through with the visit.

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Yaser Ahmed Ali

Yaser Ahmed Ali is one of six members of the AlMoamen family who have been  arrested since the 2011 pro-democracy demonstrations in Bahrain. He was 24 years old at the time of his warrantless arrest and is currently serving his sentence in Jau Prison.

Yaser was arrested on 13 March 2017 from his home in Sitra by masked officers in civilian clothing along with Criminal Investigation officers. The forces violently raided his house without presenting a search warrant and broke down doors before arresting him along with his three brothers. Later on, authorities published their pictures and forced confessions on the state TV, claiming they were members of a terrorist cell involved in a bombing of a police bus.

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