AFP/Manama

Bahrain’s Court of Cassation has set a January 7 date to announce its verdict in the trial of 13 Shia opposition leaders jailed for their role in last year’s unrest, their lawyers said yesterday.
At a hearing attended by foreign diplomats and a UN human rights representative, the court also rejected a request by the men to release them on bail pending the verdict, the lawyers said.
The activists, including prominent opposition figure Abdelhadi al-Khawaja, took part in 2011 anti-government protests and were convicted by a military tribunal on charges that included “setting up terror groups to topple the regime”.
In September, an appeals court upheld life sentences for seven of the activists, all Shias, including Khawaja, and jail terms ranging from five to 15 years for the others.
The defendants, who played leading roles in the month-long Shia-led protests last year, were retried in civil court after they were convicted by a special semi-military court of plotting to topple the ruling family.