Amnesty International accused the Bahraini regime of detaining and torturing children who have allegedly taken part in pro-democracy protests against the rule of Al-Khalifa.

Amnesty International accused the Bahraini regime of detaining and torturing children who have taken part in pro-democracy protests against the rule of Al-Khalifa.

"Children are being routinely detained, ill-treated and tortured in Bahrain," the rights watchdog said.

It noted that scores of children, including some as young as 13, "were blindfolded, beaten and tortured in detention over the past two years."

"By rounding up suspected under-age offenders and locking them up, Bahrain's authorities are displaying an appalling disregard for its international human rights obligations," said Said Boumedouha, Amnesty's deputy director for the Middle East and North Africa.

The group said at least 110 children aged between 16 and 18 are held at the Dry Dock Prison, an adult facility, pending investigation or trial, over taking part in protests demanding just political participation in the Gulf island.

“Bahrain's government purports to respect human rights yet it is brazenly flouting international obligations on a routine basis by resorting to extreme measures such as imposing harsh prison sentences on children," said Boumedouha.

Bahrain is a signatory to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which defines a child as anyone below the age of 18. Amnesty said the convention explicitly prohibits torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

The organization urged Bahrain to consider "alternative penalties for children who have committed internationally recognizable criminal offences, such as probation and community service."

On March 14, 2011, troops from Saudi Arabia invaded the country to assist the Bahraini government in its crackdown on the peaceful protesters.

According to local sources, scores of people have been killed and hundreds arrested.

Physicians for Human Rights says doctors and nurses have been detained, tortured, or disappeared because they have "evidence of atrocities committed by the authorities, security forces, and riot police" in the crackdown on anti-government protesters.