King restores citizenship of 551 Bahrainis: official

Dubai, Apr 21 (AFP) King Hamad has ordered that the citizenship of 551 Bahrainis be restored, after their nationality had been revoked by courts, the official Bahrain News Agency said Sunday. The king, who can revoke court decisions, requested that the competent authorities take into account "the nature of crimes committed".

Human rights groups estimate that 990 mainly Shiite people have had their citizenship revoked since 2012 protests against the government. (AFP) RUP

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