A 50-year-old doctor of Indian origin working at a hospital in Bahrain was arrested on Thursday, October 19, for sharing posts on social media that were critical of Palestine. Dr. Sunil J Rao, who specialized in internal medicine at the Royal Bahrain Hospital, was terminated from his position  of a doctor immediately before his arrest.

Dr. Sunil J Rao, originally from the Indian state of Karnataka, graduated from Andhra Medical College in Visakhapatnam, India, and completed his MD from Kasturba Medical College in Mangaluru, Karnataka.

In a series of posts on social media, Dr. Rao expressed support for Israel during its conflict with the Palestinian militant group Hamas. One of his posts read, “IsraelFightsBack will do a scorched earth attack, plenty will be killed, displaced, Hamas will be destroyed (rightly so), then what? If I may ask? #Israel #Gaza #IsraelPalestineConflict. Occupy under military force?”

Dr. Rao’s arrest was carried out by the Anti-Cyber Crimes Directorate of the General Directorate of Anti-Corruption and Economic and Electronic Security. He faced charges related to violating civil peace and social stability, which were seen as potentially affecting the security and safety of society.

Royal Bahrain Hospital responded to the situation by stating, “It has come to our attention that Dr. Sunil Rao, who is working as a Specialist in Internal Medicine, has posted tweets on social media that are offensive to our society.” The hospital emphasized that Dr. Rao’s tweets and beliefs were of a personal nature and did not reflect the opinions and values of the institution.

The hospital continued, “This is a violation of our code of conduct, and we have taken the necessary legal actions. His service has been terminated with immediate effect.”

After facing backlash for his social media posts, Dr. Rao issued an apology, saying, “I would like to apologize for the statement that I posted on this platform. It was insensitive in the context of the current event. As a doctor, all lives matter. I respect this country, its people, and its religion deeply as I have been here for the past 10 years.”