Police in Bahrain have detained an activist and her 1-year-old son in a raid on the fifth anniversary of Saudi and Emirati troops putting down Arab Spring-inspired protests in the tiny island kingdom.
Maryam al-Khawaja told The Associated Press that police raided her sister Zainab's apartment in Manama today afternoon, detaining her and her son Abdulhadi.
Al-Khawaja said the two had been taken to a local police station. The two women's mother also confirmed the detentions. Bahraini authorities did not immediately announce the raid.
However, Zainab al-Khawaja faces several years in prison on a variety of charges linked to her activism.
Bahrain, home to the US Navy's 5th Fleet, saw its Shiite majority protest the kingdom's Sunni rulers in 2011, demanding more political freedoms. Low-level dissent continues even now.
