Bahrain hunger striker force-fed, drugged

The wife of a jailed Bahraini activist and hunger striker said on Sunday he was being drugged and force-fed, but authorities denied the accusations saying the man had agreed to receive medical treatment.

Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, one of 14 men imprisoned on charges of leading an uprising in the island kingdom last year, has been fasting for more than two months. "I went to see my husband today and he told me that he was drugged last Monday," Khadija al-Mousawi told Reuters by phone after what she said was her first visit to her husband in two weeks.

"After he woke up he found two IV (intravenous) injections in his arms and a feeding-tube down his nose. It was done against his will," she added. Bahrain's Defence Forces Hospital, where Khawaja is being kept, dismissed the accusations in an emailed statement.

"We want to be clear that the patient has not been force-fed or treated against his will," said the statement quoting a spokesperson. Abdulhadi al-Khawaja was given a life sentence for calling for the creation of a republic.

An appeal hearing is to be held this week in the case of Khawaja and 13 others jailed for leading last year's protests. Bahrain, where the Sunni Muslim Al Khalifa family rules over a majority Shi'ite Muslim population, has been in turmoil since an uprising erupted last year demanding reforms after successful revolts in Egypt and Tunisia.

The protests escalated ahead of last week's Formula One Grand Prix, drawing criticism of Bahrain from some governments, rights groups and media watchdogs who say police use excessive force and the government should find a political solution.

Western allies such as Britain and the United States, whose Fifth Fleet is moored in Manama, have offered only muted criticism of Bahrain. Bahrain's neighbour Saudi Arabia also fears unrest could spread amongst Shi'ites in its oil-producing Eastern Province.

Reuters