Charles and Camilla’s gifts from rulers soaked in blood

Outrage of MPs over watches presented by Bahrain regime

THE Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall and the Duke of Edinburgh accepted expensive watches from one of the Arab world’s bloodiest regimes.

The gifts from the Bahraini royal family were revealed in an official list that provoked furious criticism when it was published yesterday.

Labour MP Ann Clwyd, chairman of the Commons all-party group on human rights, said: ‘It sends completely the wrong message. I wouldn’t want to give any statement of approval to a regime that continues to abuse human rights. There were some executions there just a few days ago.’

she added: ‘The royals have to make their own minds up but I would have thought accepting lavish gifts from the Bahraini royals shows a lack of awareness.’

Bahrain’s rulers have been accused of using torture and brute force against opponents. Opposition leaders have been imprisoned and others sentenced to death in a crackdown on dissent. During the Arab spring in 2011, the pro-democracy movement was crushed and more than 40 campaigners killed.

Last sunday, three men accused of killing three police officers were executed after a trial labelled ‘unfair’ by Amnesty International.

The list of royal gifts received last year reveals that Charles accepted a watch, a chess set, a book and a portfolio of prints from the King of Bahrain, Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.

Camilla was also given a watch and a ‘decorated box’ during the couple’s official visit to the Gulf nation last November.

The Duke of Edinburgh also received a watch presented by the country’s king last May, the list reveals.

Last night human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell said: ‘These gifts are tainted. They come from a regime that stands accused of gross human rights abuses. The royals should have never visited Bahrain, let alone accepted these gifts.’

The revelations throw an uncomfortable spotlight on the Royal Family’s close links to many hardline rulers in the Middle East.

The Crown Prince of Bahrain has been seen with the Queen in the Royal Box at Ascot and has hosted visits from Prince Charles and Prince Andrew. In 2012, the Countess of Wessex caused a storm by accepting two sets of jewels on a visit to Bahrain in December 2011.

Clarence House refused to reveal any details of the watches, apart from confirming their existence. Yesterday a spokesman said: ‘All official visits like the one to Bahrain are undertaken at the request of Her Majesty’s Government and the exchange of gifts would be a standard element of any such visit.’

The spokesman added that at the time of the tour the Duke and Duchess were made aware of the issues raised by human rights organisations.

There was no comment last night from Buckingham Palace regarding the watch presented to the Duke of Edinburgh. But the palace’s gift policy says: ‘Official gifts are not the private property of the member of the Royal Family who receives them but are instead received in an official capacity in the course of official duties in support of, and on behalf, of the Queen.’

Less controversially, yesterday’s list revealed the staggering array of items given to the Queen for her 90th birthday – from a bag of salt to a pair of stags.

The salt was given by the people of the British Virgin Islands and the two young red deer stags from Woburn Abbey Deer Park were a gift from the Duke of Bedford. Her Majesty was also given a horse called sir John by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and four maroon dog jackets, suitable for corgis, by the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead.

The list revealed that Prince George and Princess Charlotte were given more than 165 gifts between them on their family’s official tour of Canada last year.

George, three, received 51 gifts from the public and officials during the trip in september. Among them were 11 soft toys including a moose and a wolf. His one-year-old sister did even better, receiving 56 gifts. seventeen were cuddly toys, including a cat and an otter.

Both George and Charlotte were each also given an aviation suit, a life jacket, a toy hockey stick and a set of wet-weather gear. In addition, they received 58 joint gifts.

The Queen made her annual visit to the sandringham Women’s Institute yesterday, appearing well after the heavy cold that laid her low over the Christmas season.