Bahrain releases activist al-Khawaja, baby son

A court in Bahrain has ordered the release of a prominent female rights campaigner, Zainab al-Khawaja, who has been in prison with her baby son since March.

According to the public prosecution statement carried by state news agency BNA, a Bahraini judge ordered her release and that of another mother “on account of their humanitarian situation and for the well-being and interests of their children.”

The statement did not mention what the charges were against the other mother, named as Irina Bojutova.

Meanwhile, Zainab’s sister Maryam al-Khawaja, who is the co-director of the Guld Center for Human Rights (GCHR), has said the charges against her still stand and she could be returned to prison anytime.

“Obviously, we are delighted, but what is important and what needs to change in Bahrain is the system that saw her put in prison in the first place. Yes, she has been released but there is no guarantee she won’t be rearrested in a few weeks or a few months,” she said.

Bahraini authorities had earlier rejected a request by al-Khawaja to allow her 17-month-old baby boy out of jail. Prison authorities had even refused to let Khawaja’s mother, Khadija al-Mousawi, see her grandson.

SS