MANAMA (Dispatches) -- A Bahraini court resumed proceedings Sunday in the mass trial of more than 60 Shia clerics, after the hearing was postponed from Oct. 7, as a leading opposition society reported that authorities have detained 62 religious scholars and arrested over 820 people since March.
The hearing convened via video conference rather than in person, according to lawyers and activists monitoring the case. The defendants include prominent scholars Sheikh Muhammad Sanqour, Sheikh Mahmoud al-Aali, Sheikh Ali al-Sadadi and Sheikh Hani al-Banna.
The Al-Wefaq National Islamic Society said the proceedings have been marked by serious violations of fair trial standards. 
Sheikh Hussein al-Dehi, the group’s deputy secretary-general, said in a report titled “Beyond Restrictions” that authorities have extracted coerced confessions, required defendants to sign documents without knowledge of their content, and restricted access to legal counsel.
“What is happening is a trial of the Shia,” Sanqour said during the hearing, according to accounts provided by activists. 
He described being forced to stand blindfolded for a week during interrogation and said he was asked only three questions at the prosecutor’s office, yet later confronted with a case file containing dozens of pages.
Al-Wefaq’s report, released Saturday, documented 62 religious scholars detained — 60 inside Bahrain and two in the United Arab Emirates — alongside more than 820 arrests since the start of regional conflict in March through mid-September 2026.
The figures align with independent human rights documentation. Materials submitted to the Human Rights Committee’s 146th session by civil society groups including SALAM DHR reported that 309 people were detained between March 1 and April 21, including 24 minors. 
By July, CIVICUS placed Bahrain on its Watchlist, citing a “systematic campaign of arrests and detention” targeting human rights defenders, political leaders, religious figures and peaceful protesters.
The crackdown accelerated after the U.S. and Israeli launched their terrorist war on Iran on February 28. Bahrain’s Civil Defense Council banned demonstrations on March 5-6, and the Al Khalifa regime criminalized online discussion of the war. 
Human Rights Watch documented arrests for publishing images of bombings, participating in marches, and expressing political opinions connected to regional events.
A joint submission to the Human Rights Committee by Bahrain Forum for Human Rights and other groups documented at least 21 enforced disappearances during 2026. 
One case involved Sayed Muhammad al-Mousawi, who died in custody on March 27 after what Physicians for Human Rights assessed as injuries consistent with repeated blunt force trauma.
Al-Dehi called for the release of detained clerics, the invalidation of statements obtained under duress, and independent international investigations into the violations. He urged human rights organizations and international bodies to follow up on the case and ensure respect for religious freedoms and the legal rights of detainees.
The trial’s next session has not been announced.