Alwaght- Bahraini regime has banned members of dissolved opposition parties from running for election, putting more pressures on the pro-democracy dissent.
Official BNA news agency reported on Monday, the West-backed regime's King Hamad ratified an amended law on "The Exercise of Political Rights" that prohibits "leaders and members of political associations dissolved for violating the kingdom's constitution or its laws" from standing in parliamentary elections. It also bans anyone "convicted of a felony, even if they have been granted amnesty".
The kingdom has been hit by waves of unrest since 2011, when authorities crushed protests demanding a constitutional monarchy and an elected prime minister.
Opposition movements have been outlawed and hundreds of dissidents have been imprisoned - with many stripped of their nationality.
The revision comes as Bahrain prepares to renew its 40-seat parliament this fall.
Opposition parties boycotted the last elections in 2014.
Since then, authorities have outlawed the main Shiite opposition group, Al-Wefaq, and the main secular opposition group, the National Democratic Action Society (Waad).
Bahrain is a key ally of the UK and the US and home to the US Fifth Fleet.
Earlier this month, a Bahraini appeals court upheld a five-year prison sentence against prominent human rights advocate Nabeel Rajab over tweets critical of the regime and the Saudi-led coalition's aggression on Yemen.
Rights groups have blamed the Bahraini regime for repressing free speech in a crackdown on dissent.
"Courts convict and imprison peaceful dissenters, including prominent human rights defenders and opposition leaders, and file trumped-up charges against their relatives. Security forces use excessive force to disperse peaceful assemblies," Human Rights Watch said in a report this year.
