Political prisoners on hunger strike in Bahrain have rebuffed government concessions and will extend their protest, raising the stakes in the biggest showdown for years between dissidents and the Saudi-backed ruling family.
The Sunni Muslim Al Khalifa dynasty has largely kept a lid on dissent since Riyadh sent troops to help it crush an "Arab Spring" uprising in 2011 by the mostly Shi'ite opposition, and the hunger strike is the biggest organised protest in years.
"Based on conversations with prisoners following the Interior Ministry statement, it is clear that the hunger strike will continue until the government addresses their concerns seriously and in good faith," said Sayed Alwadaei, advocacy director at the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy. The government disputes that 800 prisoners have joined the hunger strike, with the General Directorate of Reform and Rehabilitation saying in an emailed statement to Reuters that the number of detainees who have reported being on hunger strike "is 121 and at no point was it over 124".
Bahraini human rights activist Maryam al-Khawaja said her father Abdulhadi, a prominent opposition figure, was rushed to intensive care twice after the hunger strike started and was denied access to a cardiologist to treat his heart condition.
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