The top legal body in Bahrain has rejected a Danish request to transfer political hunger striker Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, said to be close to death.

A supreme judicial council official said the proposed transfer of the prisoner did not meet the “specific conditions” required for such a move.

Mr Khawaja is protesting against a life sentence he received over protests by the Shia Muslim community.

He has told his family he will not stop his fast, now into its 60th day.

His daughter Zainab, who has been protesting over his plight, was arrested on Saturday for the second time this week and freed again on Sunday morning.