Bahrain's foreign minister said on Wednesday the kingdom won't tolerate "any degrading treatment" of prisoners and vowed to probe Human Rights Watch (HRW) allegations that detainees are tortured.

The US-based rights group said in a report released on Monday that Bahrain had in 2007 resumed the practice of torturing detainees after having ended the "scourge" in the late 1990s.
 

"The government will look into allegations raised by the report," and if they are confirmed, "will refer the matter to the relevant authorities to take appropriate action," Sheikh Khaled bin Ahmad al-Khalifa was quoted as saying by the official Bahrain News Agency.
 

"The kingdom of Bahrain condemns any degrading treatment of individuals in custody and will not tolerate violations in this regard," Sheikh Khaled said.

Constitutional guarantee
"The Bahraini constitution guarantees human rights in the kingdom," he said, adding that this is reinforced by a number of laws that prevent detainees "from being subjected to degrading treatment.
 

The sheikh added that "Bahrain will continue to work with Human Rights Watch and other non-governmental organisations to ensure the continued application of international standards in the kingdom," and "the protection of human rights as a fundamental principle of the rule of law."
 

Based on interviews with 20 former detainees and the review of court and medical records, HRW concluded that the kingdom resumed the torture of detainees in late 2007, after having abandoned the practice around seven years earlier.

Torture and threat
There is "credible evidence" that security forces subjected detainees to electric shocks and beatings, had suspended them in painful positions, forced them to stand for long periods of time, and threatened their family members with death and rape, HRW's deputy Middle East director Joe Stork said.
 

Bahrain is a small Gulf island kingdom with modest oil production. It is connected to powerful, Sunni-majority Saudi Arabia by a causeway, and is home to the US navy's Fifth Fleet.

Source: AFP