Bahrain slashes U.S. human rights report

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Bahrain on Saturday strongly condemned and questioned the findings of the U.S. State Department 's 2013 Country Report on Human Rights in the kingdom.

The U.S. report sharply criticized Bahrain for what it claimed as arbitrary arrests, torture and other strings of human rights violations. But Bahrain's Interior Ministry counteracted each points stated in the report, starting with the so-called 52 deaths during the 2011 unrest.

The ministry said that an independent inquiry, Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry, found 35 deaths were linked to the unrest from February to April of 2011.

"These deaths included five members of the security forces and four expatriate workers," the ministry said, adding that between October and December of 2011, additional four people died in disturbances.

"Therefore, the total number of people who lost their lives in 2011 as a result of the unrest is 39 ... It is unclear where the Department of State found the additional 13 deaths," the ministry questioned.

The U.S. report also mentioned that Bahrain's security forces used excess force to quell anti-government protests, but Bahrain said "more police officers died last year than rioters."

"Police have not responded with excessive force. In fact, they use less force than is permitted under international law."

The Bahraini ministry said that 13 officers had been killed, more than 80 sustained life-changing injuries, such as loss of limb or bodily function, and over 2,600 injured during daily clashes with anti-government protesters who hurl Molotov Cocktails and use home made weapons.

"In the United States, such behavior by rioters would have been met with lethal force in the form of live fire," the ministry added.

On Bahrain's efforts to ensure human rights, it said nearly 4, 000 ministry personnel have received relevant training up to this year. The ministry is also dealing with "daily rumors on social media" of arbitrary arrests and torture allegations.

"There is a zero-tolerance policy within the government of Bahrain for torture of any kind." The majority of prisoners at the country's largest prison, the Jaw Prison, were convicted of crimes such as murder, illegal drug trafficking and theft, the ministry said, denying the U.S. report that said political activists formed the majority of those inmates. Endi

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