Manama: The international commission probing incidents and human rights abuses in Bahrain is re-opening its office in Manama three days after shutting it down.
However, only people who secure direct or online appointments will be received by the staff at the Adliya headquarters, the commission spokeswoman reportedly said on Thursday.
The Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI), set up by King Hamad Bin Eisa Al Khalifa in June, shut its office on Monday evening after it was mobbed by protesters reportedly pressed to express their displeasure following reports that it had cleared the Bahraini authorities of perpetrating crimes against humanity.
“Hundreds of people forced their way into our office, having been angered over what they believed to be the commission Chair’s ‘conclusions’ on the investigation, and additionally having been directed by activists on Twitter and through mass texts to come to the office to report their complaints,” the BICI said.
According to the commission, there had been “misleading headlines in recent news articles claiming that it has determined that the government of Bahrain committed no crimes against humanity during the demonstrations that have occurred over the last several months.”
The commission said that its members “have visited prisons, hospitals and demonstration sites and stayed at the office until well past midnight in order to accommodate the high volume of interview requests.”
Despite the verbal and physical attacks, the BICI pledged not to bow to pressure tactics or allow itself to be used as a political tool by any group and vowed to continue its work. Several political formations have condemned the attack on the commission.
