Gulf kingdom of Bahrain cracks down on dissent as Iran war reignites internal unrest

A man detained in Bahrain last month as the island kingdom came under missile attack from Iran vanished for days, until his family was called to retrieve his body from a military hospital.

Relatives said Mohamed al-Mousawi, a Shiite Muslim who had previously been imprisoned, was saving money to start a business. His body was returned covered in slash marks and bruising, including on the soles of his feet.

His death has become a focal point in the Sunni-ruled, Shiite-majority country on the front lines of the war, where critics argue that authorities have resorted to tactics reminiscent of the suppression of Arab Spring protests in 2011.

Bahrain, a monarchy that hosts the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, has detained numerous individuals during the conflict for capturing footage of strikes and protests, showing support for Iran, and suspected espionage.

“They aim to ensure no one challenges the state’s narrative and silence dissenting voices that do not align with their version of the war’s events,” said Sayed Ahmed AlWadaei of the London-based Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy.

Bahrain’s Interior Ministry claimed that al-Mousawi was arrested on suspicion of spying for Iran, a claim refuted by his family. The government stated that the country is safeguarding its national security and refuted any sectarian bias, asserting that investigations into abuse allegations are carried out by independent bodies.

Al-Mousawi had served around 11 years of a 21-year prison sentence for charges including arson and affiliation with a terrorist group before being released in 2024 under a royal pardon.

A relative and a close family friend disclosed to AP under anonymity for fear of repercussions that al-Mousawi went missing on March 19 after attending prayers with two friends who have also disappeared. Human rights organizations have long accused Bahrain of enforced disappearances.

On March 27, his family was informed to claim his body. The relative who viewed it at the morgue mentioned that al-Mousawi seemed to have been beaten with cables. There were signs of electrocution burns, including behind his knees, and cigarette burns on various parts of his body.

The AP independently examined images of al-Mousawi’s body, which exhibited marks consistent with descriptions from five witnesses who saw it in person. All sources requested anonymity due to fear of reprisal.

Bahrain’s Interior Ministry stated that al-Mousawi had been held by the National Security Agency. The domestic intelligence agency had its power to detain individuals over abuse allegations removed as part of reforms following the 2011 protests but had it reinstated in 2017 as Bahrain intensified its suppression of dissent.

The Interior Ministry dismissed the images of the deceased’s injuries as “inaccurate and misleading, deliberately disseminated to distort public opinion,” without further clarification.

The death certificate from the military hospital attributed his passing to a heart attack. His family asserted that the 32-year-old had no preexisting medical conditions.

Ahmed Banasr, a forensic specialist with the New York-based Physicians for Human Rights, stated that the wounds in the images indicated blunt force trauma. The presence of wounds on the soles of his feet ruled out other explanations like a physical altercation or fall.

“The findings strongly suggest potential torture,” he remarked.

Al-Mousawi was among the numerous Bahraini Shiites ensnared in a crackdown that critics argue has intensified since the war began between Israel, the U.S., and Iran on Feb. 28.

Rights groups perceive the arrests and al-Mousawi’s demise as a new chapter in Bahrain’s prolonged campaign of repression that peaked in 2011 during the wave of pro-democracy movements across the region. The ruling Al Khalifa family, with assistance from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, quashed mass protests that year.

Periodic unrest has persisted since then, with the government portraying the predominantly Shiite demonstrators as extensions of Iranian influence. Unlike other Sunni-led Gulf states, Bahrain, like Iran, has a Shiite majority.

“The extent to which the government will intensify its crackdown remains uncertain,” stated Maryam al-Khawaja, a Bahraini activist residing abroad, whose father is imprisoned in Bahrain. “The current approach appears significantly harsher than what we have witnessed in recent years.”

Bahrain’s government defended its security measures as a direct and appropriate response to Iran’s attacks.

“The detainees include individuals who documented military and strategic sites during active attacks on Bahraini soil, those who shared sensitive information, and those who openly showed support for a state that had launched strikes on Bahraini territory,” the government affirmed.

“Portraying arrests based on actions as evidence of sectarian persecution and conflating the two is a narrative we strongly reject,” it added.

Since the commencement of the conflict, at least 41 individuals, including migrant workers, have been detained for sharing content depicting what authorities labeled as “Iranian aggression” or expressing sympathy for it. Some face charges of treason, punishable by life imprisonment or capital punishment.

Bahrain has reported over 600 Iranian drone and missile strikes, resulting in at least two fatalities and damaging infrastructure such as a desalination plant, an oil refinery, and an aluminum smelter. Iran has repeatedly targeted the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet headquarters.

Some demonstrators have mourned the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and celebrated the strikes on Bahrain, as seen in videos reviewed by AP. The footage depicts firebombs being thrown and vehicles set on fire.

The day after the conflict began, 21-year-old Hussein Fatiil and a companion shared videos on social media showing them waving a poster of Iran’s supreme leader at a protest outside the U.S. Embassy. Shortly after, plainclothes officers took them away in an unmarked vehicle.

The men reappeared hours later, contacting their families from a police station after being interrogated, Hussein’s father, Naji Fatiil, informed AP.

Three days later, Hussein called his family again, revealing that he had been charged with five offenses, including social media misuse, incitement of hatred, and treason, according to his father.

“The charges are severe and magnify the situation,” he expressed, stating that his son claimed the embassy protest was peaceful. “Now he may face the most severe penalties. All I wish for is my son to have a normal life and avoid a death sentence.”