MOI Murder and indiscriminate attacks continue on Peaceful Protesters in Bahrain

Protesters attacked in Bahrain, rights group says
By Mohammed Jamjoom – CNN – April 1, 2012

(CNN) — Government forces attacked protesters in Bahrain Saturday, according to a human rights group.

“Security forces have spent the day attacking protests in different parts of the country,” the Bahrain Center for Human Rights said in a statement. “Many serious injuries were reported, including a 15-year-old boy who was hit directly in the arm with a teargas canister.”

The group also said its president, Nabeel Rajab, was arrested before a planned march in Manama that was to be a show of solidarity with Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja, one of Bahrain’s most prominent human rights activists.

Al-Khawaja was sentenced to life in prison in June for his role in the anti-government demonstrations that swept through Bahrain a year ago. He has been on hunger strike for more than 50 days in protest of his sentence.

On Friday, Amnesty International issued a statement calling on Bahraini authorities to release al-Khawaja amid fears that he is at risk of death.

A member of al-Khawaja’s family told CNN they were informed that al-Khawaja had been taken to a hospital due to his deteriorating condition but were not allowed to visit with him.

CNN could not independently confirm the claims of attacks on protesters, but the Bahrain Interior Ministry confirmed the arrest of Rajab. The ministry said in a tweet that Rajab was arrested for “calling (for) participation in unauthorized rally & illegal gathering.”

Meanwhile, a 22-year-old protester died early Saturday after a shooting that the main Shiite opposition party Al-Wefaq blamed on neighborhood militias loyal to the Bahraini regime.

The victim, identified by police as Ahmed Ismael Abdulsamad, died of a gunshot wound to the thigh, the country’s chief of public security, Major-General Tariq Al Hassan, said in a statement released by the Interior Ministry. …more