International Responsibility of Bahrain and Saudi Arabia for Human Rights Violations in Bahrain

چکیده مقاله

Violations of the human rights of the Shia community in Bahrain, which makes up the majority of Bahrain’s population, have been systematic and widespread for many years. These violations have been committed not only by the Al Khalifa regime as the government of Bahrain, but also by the Saudi regime as a neighbor of Bahrain. Investigating human rights violations of the Shia in Bahrain is very important from the perspective of the law of state responsibility as the basic rights of the Shia including the right to life and personal security and the right to citizenship, have been violated. Indeed, since heartbreaking and tragic acts have been committed in Bahrain, mechanisms under international law are necessary to hold the Bahraini and Saudi regimes accountable. The present paper will scrutinize the law of state responsibility in terms of establishing the international responsibility of the said states. It will be argued that the international responsibility of one state, does not preclude the international responsibility of another one. Each one could be held responsible for its internationally wrongful act and in case of overlapping, joint responsibility will occur.