MANAMA (Sputnik) — Human Rights Watch, a rights pressure group, published a report last Sunday where it painted a gruesome picture of continued torture and killings of political opposition members in Bahraini detention.

“Sixteen young men were charged with participating in a terrorist group and planning murders, but the court cleared three of them of charges due to lack of evidence,” the judge said.

Three men were sentenced to 15 years in jail and the rest were sentenced to 10 years. They will all have Bahraini citizenship revoked.

The small island nation is ruled by a Sunni-minority government. It has seen years of protests staged by Shiite-majority population, which often lead to brutal crackdowns and charges of terrorism against key activists.

Numerous rights watchdogs have been urging the Bahraini government to stop jailing opposition members after it suppressed a major uprising four years ago, inspired by a string of Arab Spring protests in the region.