The defense panel of the Bahraini opposition leader and the Secretary General of al-Wefaq Association Sheikh Ali Salman held a press conference to comment on the appeals court’s verdict

The defense panel of the Bahraini opposition leader and the Secretary General of al-Wefaq Association Sheikh Ali Salman held a press conference to comment on the appeals court's verdict which ramped up his jail term from 4 to 9 years on alleges of ‘inciting violence.

The attorney Hasan Radhi said that Sheikh Salman smiled when the verdict was announced, adding that a challenge at the court of cassation will be prepared at the request of Al-Wefaq's leader.

For her part, the attorney Jalila al-Sayyed considered that the verdict is disappointing, revealing that the regime authorities did not use to let the attorneys attend the trials for more than three minutes and Sheikh Salman to hold confidential contacts with the lawyers.

Al-Sayyed asserted her determination to keep defending Sheikh Salman, hoping that the authorities let the attorneys meet Sheikh Salman in the coming days.

The International Center for Supporting Rights and Freedoms (ICSRF) urged the King of Bahrain Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa to issue pardon to the opposition leader and Secretary-General of Al-Wefaq National Islamic Society, Sheikh Ali Salman, deeming the toughened sentence "very concerning".

Bahrain's national opposition democratic societies said that the High Appeals Court ruling issued today (May 30, 2016) against the opposition leader and Secretary-General of Al-Wefaq National Islamic Society, Sheikh Ali Salman, "will only aggravate the security and political situation in Bahrain, further intensify tensions, and thwart the political solution demanded by the opposition."