Rights groups condemn Bahrain's largest mass trial of Shia clerics in history

Bahrain is set to hold the largest mass trial of Shia clerics in the country's history, with rights groups accusing the judiciary of obtaining confessions through coercion and torture.

On Sunday, a Bahraini court is set to hand down judgments to 69 defendants, among them 60 clerics, on charges of membership of a terrorist group, attempting to overthrow the "constitutional regime" and trying to promote Iran's political ideology.

According to testimony obtained by the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (Bird), the defendents were subjected to a range of abuses, including forced standing, prolonged blindfolding and handcuffing, sleep deprivation, and threats of physical and sexual violence against them and their families.