Bahrain Mirror: The Bahrain Forum for Human Rights (BFHR) said in a statement that it filed 11 complaints to Mr. Heiner Bielefeldt, UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Beliefs, about the attacks of the Bahraini authorities on Ashura events, which are being held since two weeks ago on October 6, 2015, reflecting the government's hostile behaviour towards the religious freedoms of the indigenous Shiite population in Bahrain.

BFHR said in a statement issued on Monday (October 19, 2015) that such violations are the result of an environment embracing the culture of hatred and exclusion that has turned state executive bodies to a blatant source of racial and religious discrimination, stressing that government media outlets in addition to some Friday religious sermons continue to spread hate speech against a group of people in the Bahraini society, i.e. the Shiite sect.

"Preventing the UN Special Rapporteur on Religious Freedoms from visiting Bahrain means that an international monitoring mechanism is being disabled; in order to continue violating freedom of religion, as a pressure card and part of the policies of systematic suppression. Therefore, the authorities refused in 2012 Recommendation No. 39 made by Canada," the forum added.

"There is no justification for the security bodies' acts of taking down Ashura flags and banners Alashouraiah and summoning and intimidating citizens for hanging up black banners," BFHR further stated, calling on the authorities "to immediately stop such illegal abuses and violation of the International Bill of Human Rights."

Arabic issue