Bahrain police kill two protesters
February 16, 2011 - 0:0
Bahraini security forces have shot dead two Shia protesters at the funeral of a pro-democracy demonstrator who died of his wounds a day after Monday's “Day of Rage” rallies in the capital Manama.
The protesters were killed outside a hospital in Manama, where the body of the demonstrator killed earlier was being kept, a Press TV correspondent reported Tuesday.The 22-year-old protester died of bullet wounds in his back in the village of Daih, a suburb of Manama, on Monday.
The news of the protesters' death prompted activists to call for a vast participation at his funeral and to urge Bahrainis to escalate the pro-democracy protests.
Police, however, clashed with the protesters, trying to disperse crowds of pro-democracy rallies at the funeral ceremony.
Monday protests had taken place in a string of Shia-majority villages, including Darraz and Sanabis, west of Manama, Sitra, east of the capital, and Jed Hafs just to the north, as well as the historic Balad Al-Qadim quarter in the city center.
Security forces were deployed in force along the main routes into Manama in an effort to prevent a gathering that had been arranged on the Internet, mirroring similar online initiatives around the Arab world.
Shia-majority Bahrain is ruled by the Sunni Muslim Al-Khalifa family of King Hamad, which retains a tight grip on the premiership and key ministries.
The majority Shia population has been complaining about inequality and oppression. The government has been clamping down on the opposition since the country's controversial general elections in August last year.
'Saudi Arabia sending troops to Bahrain'
Saudi Arabia is sending troops to Bahrain in a move to crack down on pro-democracy protesters who took to the streets in the capital Manama, a political analyst says.
The analyst told PressTV on Tuesday that Riyadh is sending its troops in an attempt to help King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa to crack down on the protesters.
Bahraini police have been using tear gas and batons to disperse the pro-democracy protesters in the Bahrain capital.
(Source: Press TV) Photo: Bahrain riot police shot two protesters dead during the funeral of another protester killed earlier on Tuesday.