Duraz attack: Court reduces sentences for 109 prisoners

More than 100 men, charged with attacking police officers in Duraz, have had their jail terms reduced by the High Appeals court. A total of 146 suspects were tried in the case with the court handing them sentences ranging from six months to 10 years imprisonment.

Eighty-two of the 109 appellants saw their one-year jail terms reduced by half to six-month, while the remaining got their 10-year jail terms reduced to seven years. The court rejected the appeals of others involved in the case. Court files say the suspects attacked police officers during an illegal demonstration organized in front of Shia cleric Isa Qassim’s house.

Weapons, as well as grenades, were seized from suspects during demonstrations, which continued for almost a year. “One of the suspects guided us to a cache of weapons, grenades, and firebombs,” a police officer told the court. “The weapons were for attacking police officers.”