Washington DC. – Human Rights First has accused the U.S. Department of State of Bahrain’s Prince Nasser bin Hamad Al Khalifa of direct involvement in torture, a serious violation of human rights under the Section 7031(c) sanctions program. It recommended imposing visa sanctions.
“Bahrain has done little to hold its officials accountable for torture and other human rights abuses, yet the U.S. government continues to do business as usual with the same individuals.” Mike Breen, President and CEO, Human Rights First. “The least the U.S. government can do is enforce Congress’s requirement that abusers not be allowed to visit this country, even if they are from governments that are military allies.”
There are several credible allegations from survivors that Nasser personally tortured them during the Bahraini government’s brutal crackdown on a peaceful democracy movement in 2011. Mr. Nasser denies torture, but Bahraini institutions lack the independence to credibly investigate these allegations.
It is unclear whether the State Department has ever reviewed the allegations against Nasser and considered barring him under a law known as Section 7031(c), which has no statute of limitations. be. Credible information about Mr. Nasser’s involvement in torture is sufficient to trigger an entry ban, unless sanctions are waived to “serve a compelling national interest.”
From attending high-level meetings to competing in triathlons, Mr. Nasser’s visit served compelling national interests that justified allowing him to enter the United States despite mutually corroborated allegations of torture. There is no evidence to suggest that this is the case.
Under Section 7031(c), “[o]Employees of foreign governments and their immediate family members who the Secretary of State has reliable information that has, directly or indirectly, engaged in… serious human rights violations shall be ineligible for admission to the United States. ”
Nasser has visited the United States several times since the 2011 torture allegations, most recently in September 2023, when he participated in a meeting between his brother and the US secretaries of state and defense. Nasser also attended a meeting between Secretary of State Antony Blinken and King Hamad in Bahrain on January 10.