Bahrain First-Hand: "Security Forces Attacked the Medical Center"

Faraz Sanei, a researcher in Bahrain for Human Rights Watch, reports:

I have spoken to two people in the Shia village of Sitra, south of Manama, who confirmed that security forces, both civilian and police, attacked the medical center there following clashes between anti-government protesters and security forces that began in Sitra at around 11 a.m. Both were at the hospital during the attack at about 4.45 p.m. As we spoke on the phone during calls earlier today I heard shots being fired. I just spoke to both witnesses for a second time and they said that security forces did not enter the center but fired rubber bullets and tear gas inside the hospital. People who had gathered outside to find out what's happening to their loved ones were forced to go inside.

Both sources have now left the medical center. One is back home in Sitra and he says the security situation there is very bad, and most people are staying in their homes. The other is a doctor who has now gone to Salmaniya hospital in Manama. He said there were several hundred people taken to Sitra (way over capacity) for injuries caused by tear gas, rubber bullets and shotgun pellets. He took five injured people with him to Salmaniya, which has admitted more than 250 cases today. He said the hospital there is overwhelmed by the number of injured. The doctor also said that three ambulances that were on their way to Sitra from Salmaniya were “hijacked” by security forces and the paramedics were beaten.

The doctor confirmed at least two dead: Bahraini Ahmed Farhan and an unidentified Bangladeshi man. There are unconfirmed reports that a third person has died as well. A second doctor said Farhan was likely shot with a shotgun and his skull was completely shattered. He said there are at least four people in critical condition at Salmaniya, including one person who has what seems to be a live ammunition bullet wound that entered and exited his chest. Another critical case is a 14-year-old-boy who was shot in the knee and was bleeding profusely. The doctor said he believes that live ammunition round were used against some villagers in Buri, south-west of Manama.