In the interview with Bassiouni’s team; we were given papers and pens and asked to write what we wanted. In the

 meeting; the issue of Bassiouni’s statement was raised. His statement was published in Al-Ayyam newspaper where he stated that the torture policy is not systematic, and that what happened was individual behaviour. I  Subsequently wrote  a letter on 8 August; where I  expressed  our annoyance of his statement, its summary was: "You  better meet with the medics before stating that there was  no systematic torture ..Do not just send your team without you. We want your personal presence immediately in the detention to prove and assure you of the systematic torture, we also demand the immediate release of the medical staff detainees due to illegal detention, and thus we ask you to personally meet with the medics". That letter was leaked through parents and then to Nada Dhaif; who delivered it to the lead investigator of the Bassiouni Commission. It was one of the leaks that reached (Bahrain Mirror) and it was fully published.

Prior to Bassiouni committee visit, they brought us new mattresses, blankets and pillows, and we were allocated a room to watch TV. That was the day before the visit; August 22, and they put new chairs in such a hurry that they did not take off the nylon dusty covers. Bassiouni sat in one of those chairs and his suit got soiled. The team noted that, but the judge who was the head of the investigation team; was trying to present a favourable image of the Ministry of Interior and was trying hard to cover up and justify mistakes, by the way we later heard this judge was hired at the Ministry of Justice. A member of the Committee was the daughter of Dr. Ali Fakhro, and a respectable Jordanian, they were the best from this team; and those two members resigned from the committee.

Our meeting began with Bassiouni from 9 am until 5 pm. We came to him in the TV room one by one. Dr.  Bassem Dhaif opened his speech with welcome; gratitude and appreciation, then as the tone of his voice raised, he said: "This report will be registered in history" and stressed, "We will expose and reveal what we went through of  violations and suffering at international conferences " and continued his anger which he initiated in English: "This report either will be thanked by people of Bahrain for revealing  what they went through  of violations, or it will bring you shame before the world if you overlooked the truth, and the whole world awaits what will be revealed  in your report." After that each one of the medics told their case and injustice they had suffered along with other

detainees.

In the Dry Dock Prison they are prisoners that are not in the spot lights. The International & human rights sympathy focused on the medics while others were neglected. This is a fact. No one spoke about the defendants of the “Tongue Laceration” case [the  mua’athen’s  (caller for prayer) tongue, which was proved to be false through their judiciary system], as well as prisoners of Manama who didn’t get  any attention not even from the Bassiouni team who came specifically only to help the medics. While those were not allowed to see their parents for more than two or three months, even after Bassiouni came. They were disappointed. They Complained.

Complaints and grumbling spread among the detainees and after meeting officer Mohammad Ansari; they asked for me to be their representative in writing their cases and complaints and submitting them to Bassiouni Commission that would  visit on 24 August. The officer agreed. A team of ten people was constituted demanding fairness like the medical staff. Two people were selected as representatives from every one of the nine cells to meet Bassiouni . Abu Ghayeb represented  his cell with certain groups.  I whispered in Bassiouni ear to “Support those for them to get a chance of improvements, whatever you issue will be  implemented”. Bassiouni agreed to stay longer to listen to them. Abu Ghayeb asked Bassiouni to send away the police officer so that he did not snoop on them. Bassiouni firmly said: "get out!" and he begrudgingly obeyed. But the Egyptian judge, head of the investigation team; was disturbed by Bassiouni’s approval. Abu Ghayeb won an opportunity to explain his case, saying: "I am accused of abducting and killing a Pakistani while I was trying to take hands off him to protect him from being killed," Abu Ghayeb was able to convey a message that helped him later to be acquitted and released.

After the detainees’ complaints to Bassiouni regarding the treatment of some of the police officers, they were directed to deal better with the detainees. Those improvements benefited all detainees, so we used to gather in the nights of Ramadan at dawn meals (Suhour)   with dishes brought by our families after breakfast.

The objective of establishing a commemoration condolence of the death of Imam Ali (first Shia Imam) was to

 restore the cohesion between the detainees after the barriers that are caused by discrimination. We prepared a program of a number of the detainees contributed in it. 

During the rituals I remembered my son martyr "Ali," I felt grave sadness; I missed him until I wept. I did not comprehend his absence and my mind did not reconcile from all the harm that happened to our country and to us. His soul came to me with this ritual to blaze my grief. I remembered his participation in the rituals in different places.  I remembered him asking me repeatedly for a ride to Manama; since he did not have a car back then. Rest in Peace my son “Ali”.

In mid-August we heard about the strike of Rula Al-Saffar. How come that my boss in Bahrain Nursing Society took a decision braver than men. She declared a strike while we backed out?

This time we decided to go on strike supported by a statement. Al- Ekri, Diwani, and I decided to issue a strike statement in an escalating step to deliver our voice to the families and people outside. We asked the rest of the doctors. There was reluctance. We decided to release the statement by our names only. Then everyone else decided to join.

Summary of the statement that was leaked to Bahrain Mirror and published then: “After serious attempts and determined efforts made by the signatories of this statement with the prison administration and officials at the Ministry of Interior to find a solution to the case of the medical staff, and due to the lack of response from the military prosecutor for our just demands to be released while ensuring residence, and drop the charges that were extracted under torture, and re-investigate those charges; we declare a hunger strike starting from the first day of Eid Al-Fitr to protest all arbitrary measures exercised by the military prosecutor and the Criminal Investigation Department, "(2).

The strike started on August 31. We confined ourselves to juice and water. Others were encouraged. Strikers began falling and taken to the prison infirmary. The prisons inspector  Major General Ibrahim Habib Al Ghaith met a group of us: the Dhaifs, Omran, Asghar, Oraibi, Diwani and I. Diwani became agitated and confronted him with the violations and bin Huwail’s lies in court.

At this particular time, one of the strikers refused to take IV fluid, police closed the cells doors on the detainees and the riot police entered the ward. All of that happened while we were far away and we did not know what was going on. Then we heard sounds of smashing plates on the walls and screaming at the riot police because they beat one of the detainees in the corridor. The plates flew on the police when the detainees saw a fellow detainee being stepped on by feet. We went out along with  Major General Al Ghaith, who panicked and fled from the ward.  Bassiouni team intervened and things were restored to normal, the doors were opened again and the strike sustained.

We were taken to court on 7 September. We were still on hunger strike. At this court session the Attorney General was not rigid as usual. The session extended until the evening. We were invited to a recession at the military prosecutor's office to have sweets. We were being treated differently, but I did not feel anything. Before the session adjourned; we repeated the request regarding my back injury and request to be examined by a forensic doctor. We were not optimistic and not paying attention to the recitation of the Court's decisions, of those decisions I was granted permission to be examined by a forensic doctor and then the last paragraph was read: "It was decided to release all defendants with guaranteeing the place of residence."

It was an unexpected surprise; at least I did not expect it.  The courtroom was full of joy. We were taken again to the Dry Dock Prison to be medically examined, and to take our belongings. In the meantime Abu Ghayeb sang a poem he wrote in a beautiful celebration inside the prison ward. The most beautiful thing for me that evening was when we got released and my sister’s marriage ceremony awaited me; who took my permission earlier to go ahead with the wedding.  It was such a wonderful coincidence for a beautiful evening for the reception of my release and my sister’s marriage.

The true picture of the medics is not the one being fabricated by the regime, but what is seen and dealt with by the jailers. Currently they are not dealing with criminals, thieves and drug addicts, but with senior consultants, surgeons and a group of the best of the medical staff.

A-Demistani said: “We were visited in Cell No. 7 by Lt. Mohammed al-Saidi, the first official to visit and talk with us. He said: "I will brainwash you” He drank tea and smoked a cigarette, and was accompanied by a police officer who obeys his orders. The smoke from the cigarette passed on our noses; we the smokers, and made us dizzy. We asked him to allow us a puff, but he replied arrogantly: “Forget it!!”

He talked about what was happening and criticized the opposition for missing the opportunity for dialogue. Then he moved to the subject of the National Unity assembly and had a critical opinion about it. Dr. Sadeq Abdullah replied: "This is a political issue that does not concern the medics, we assumed humanitarian and professional responsibility towards the wounded only. There were fabrications and blatant lies towards our work which was not true."

Whenever Al-Saidi tried to drag us with him in the political arena, (Abdullah) gently took him back to our side. The discussion lasted for an hour and a half. (Abdullah) refuted a lot of claims against the medics, until Al-Saidi mentioned the “Al-Hujaira” group and criticized the government for releasing them during the Pearl Roundabout days. Abdulla replied: "This is the mistake of the government, why allow them to go to the roundabout and then punish and imprison them? If the intention was to arrest them, why release them from the first place?" Al-Saidi was amazed like he was slapped in the face.

During the meeting Al-Saidi requested another cup of tea,  Dr. Sadeq Abdullah took Al-Saidi’s  empty cup of tea and gave it to the policeman, saying: "Here we go! take this with you!" the policeman, with a grim face,  did not want to refuse in the presence of the  Lieutenant, who did not object. This move broke the barrier between us and him. Later created a good relationship with him and even he frequently visited us in Cell 7, and our conversations with him got longer, even others wondered what was going on between us.

During my repeated visits to the Fortress Hospital for physiotherapy, I was taken by a Yemeni policeman, who was well behaved, who got surprised when I met the doctor and dictated to him the prescription (which I  had taken from Dr. Basem Dhaif) and the names of medicines I needed and he responded without censure or question; especially since this Yemeni liked to learn English and was happy when I talked to him in English. Here this policeman wondered: "Is it possible that this educated English-fluent patient who  dictated prescription to the Ministry doctor the, be really a criminal?"

On our trips to the  military court, particularly in the third time, we noticed that there is a friendly  relationship

 between Al- Samaheeji  and the guards, although they are harsher in treatment than  the prison guards. In court recess, the Asian guards gathered around Al- Samaheeji  and amusedly listened. I imagined him with his wise beard and simple clothing like Jesus with his disciples.

I asked him later: "What is the secret that attracts the guard s to you?" he replied with a smile: "My chats with them evolved little by little, I told  them that I was among the graduates students of the Soviet Union in 1987 which belongs  to the Liberation Front. And we were outcasts back then, because of our political views and our employment in the public sector was delayed because of the objection of the Ministry of Interior. So I worked with a Bahraini contractor who sold wood and our employer dealt with wood companies in Lahore, Pakistan. So I travelled frequently to Lahore as a representative of the company and it coincided that those Pakistani guards are from the same region where I used to travel, so we started talking about places that we knew in Lahore.”

After that they asked me why I was here? They were very surprised when they knew that I am an eye surgeon, and that all of those are doctors, and that our only charge was treating the wounded people. From their side as well they started complaining about their situation:"We make only BHD 160 a month for 12 hours a day,  and are commanded to deal with you cruelly , and this is injustice to us. We complained to the administration of the prison in Pakistan for lack of salary to no avail, " they also admitted:" We did not come here to insult People. "So, as you can see, they sympathized with me.

Dr. Abdulshaheed Fadhul  was discussing with one of the  simple  jailers, most of them are!, and he impressed him of the progress of science in hair transplant and nose reconstruction and other things , he told him: "I can perform any  cosmetic surgery you desire," because these are new things to him, it attracted him by listening and then respecting.

I trained him and he led me blindfolded

Captain Hamad Al-Khayat, head of services in prison, introduced himself and his father Mohammed Al Khayat, who was working in the Bahrain Red Crescent Society as Assistant Secretary-General for Foreign Affairs and also held a key position in forensic medicine at the Ministry of Interior. I trained this Captain in first aid during my presidency of the First Aid Committee of the Red Crescent; he was a youngster in high school.  He came to me masked in the first days of investigation, I did not recognize him, but he introduced himself later. This acquaintance did not benefit me, but at least he was not rude in treating me like the others.

Basem Dhaif  treated athletes, and stadiums injuries, he had  his military patients as well, those  offered  their services to provide water or anything else, however, he  just thanked them and said: "I will ask you if I need anything"

One of the most ironic paradoxes was that some guards, who escorted the prisoners in the past to Salmaniya Hospital, and they saw the doctors practicing their profession with full honour, and they now see them in complete humiliation. What should they believe?