In Bahrain, five of nine convicted medics have been arrested in a series of pre-dawn raids. The arrests come one day after Bahrain’s highest court upheld their sentences for treating demonstrators during anti-government protests last year. The longest sentence went to the former senior medic at Bahrain’s top hospital, Ali al-Ekry, who was given five years in prison. Just hours before he was arrested, Dr. al-Ekry told reporters he was unsure when he would be detained.

Dr. Ali al-Ekry: “Yes, well, in regards to our reaction to the verdicts today by reinforcing the appeals court verdict, we were expecting that, and we know that we are still targeted as medics for our role in the pro-democracy movement. I met with some today, and they expected the same, that there will be reinforcement with the verdict, and they believe also that they are innocent and they did no misdoing or wrongdoing.”