Saudi Arabia will take strict and painful measures to deal with the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, the finance minister said on Saturday, adding that "all options for dealing with the crisis are open".

Nothing justifies the Bahraini government not paying private sector workers directly, especially since the decision to pay wages includes employees registered in the Social Insurance Authority.

The General Federation of Workers Trade Unions in Bahrain (GFWTUB) said that May 1st comes this year in the light of exceptional circumstances labor movement is facing everywhere on the earth, as the Coronavirus pandemic invaded the world.

Professor Tom Collins, former Head of the Royal College of Surgeons of Ireland in Bahrain, said "all medics, all over the world, should call on regimes to grant political dissenters an amnesty."

A decision was made to double the Liquidity Fund in order to cope with the Coronavirus repercussions on the private sector, while the process of approval of applications lacks transparency, and small traders demand a "Quota" for their projects that have been the most affected by the virus.

Americans for Democracy and Human Rights in Bahrain launched a solidarity campaign with Bahraini prisoners, held in 22 different countries, in a number of different languages, to pressure the authorities for their release.

The Bahrain Oil Company (Bapco) hired dozens of foreign workers earlier this year, at a time when the number of unemployed citizens in the country is increasing, new information revealed.

Until Friday, April 24, 2020, the cost of tests carried out by medical staff as part of the campaign to combat the coronavirus epidemic exceeded 15 million dinars.

The first phase of success that Bahrain has achieved in its fight against the Coronavirus pandemic is seriously under threat, with the increase in infections amongst expatriates who already suffer from difficult conditions and exploitation by their employers.

Commenting on the reports of the death of Dr. Abdullah Al-Hamid, a prisoner of conscience who died while in custody in Saudi Arabia, Lynn Maalouf, from Amnesty International, said: "We were shocked and saddened to hear of the death of Dr. Abdullah Al-Hamid while in detention because of his peaceful activities."

Former Al-Wefaq MP, Ali Al-Aswad, responded to statements issued by the Interior Minister Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa, during a lecture at the Royal College of Command, Staff and National Defense in which he talked about the stability of security situation and what he called success in combating terrorism.

Australian MP Fiona Patten described keeping prisoners in Bahraini prisons as a human rights "travesty".

Fawziya Rashid, a Bahraini national of Pakistani origin and "Akhbar Al-Khaleej" writer, opposed the call for pardoning political prisoners even amid the increasing fear for their lives due to the Coronavirus outbreak.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) put Bahrain in the 169th rank in the list of 180 countries, according to "The illusion of peace in the Middle East" report.

The Ministry of Health announced the death of a 36-year-old expatriate male, a registered active case of Coronavirus (COVID-19) suffering from underlying and chronic health problems.

Ayatollah Sheikh Isa Qassim, the spiritual leader of the Shiite majority in Bahrain, considers that citizens are not required to abide by a decision made by the Jaafari Endowments Directorate banning the recitation of the Quran, supplications, and Hussaini Majalis Aza' (elegies) through loudspeakers during the month of Ramadan. He called on the Endowments Directorate to reverse its decision.

Bahrain extended the closure measures it took to limit the spread of coronavirus for two additional weeks from April 23 until May 7, Bahrain News Agency reported on Wednesday.

Last month, Bahrain borrowed $1.25 billion (BD470 million) to pay bonds due by the end of March.

Bahrain has pardoned more than 900 prisoners after the Coronavirus outbreak, only one third of which are political detainees. Bahrain's prisons remain overcrowded with prisoners of conscience and political prisoners.

Deputy Director of Human Rights Watch in South Asia urged the Bahraini government to release prisoners after the Coronavirus outbreak.