Ex-Bahrain official accused of torture to attend royal wedding
April 29th, 2011 - 5:17 pm ICT by ANI
London, Apr. 29 (ANI): The former head of an agency accused of torture and human rights abuses in Bahrain is expected to be a guest at Friday’s royal wedding of Prince William and Katherine Middleton.
According to the Guardian, Sheikh Khalifa Bin Ali al-Khalifa is a former head of Bahrain’s National Security Agency (NSA) and will attend the wedding in his role as the current Bahraini ambassador to London.
British sources confirmed he had been invited and a spokesperson for the Bahraini embassy in London said he was expected to attend.
Khalifa was head of the agency from 2005 to 2008.
The pressure group Human Rights Watch alleges that in 2007 detainees in Bahrain suffered torture including electric shocks and beatings.
On Thursday an invitation to attend the wedding was withdrawn from the Syrian ambassador to London because of concerns over domestic repression and human rights abuses. Libya is also excluded. (ANI)
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Tags: al khalifa, bahrain, beatings, british sources, detainees, electric shocks, embassy in london, human rights abuses, human rights watch, invitation, libya, national security agency, nsa, pressure group, prince william, repression, royal wedding, sheikh khalifa, spokesperson, syrian ambassador