Report of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry

Report of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry
the Geant Shopping Mall. The operation was planned so as to leave three exit
routes open through which protesters could leave the roundabout. As in other
operations, police were armed with sticks, shields, tear gas, sound bombs and
shotguns. The BDF Commander-in-Chief ordered the police not to use
firearms during the operation. The police were also accompanied by a number
of armoured personnel carriers and two armoured trucks equipped with water
cannons.
531. The advancing police first cleared a series of roadblocks that
demonstrators had set up using lampposts, mounds of sand and rubble, palm
trees, garbage dumpsters, plastic traffic barriers and metal barricades. As the
police entered the GCC Roundabout, they used tear gas and sound bombs to
compel the remaining protesters to vacate the area. At this point a number of
Molotov cocktails were thrown at the advancing police forces. In addition,
some of the protesters set fire to the tents and canopies that had been set up at
the roundabout. These fires were put out first by the MoI water-cannons and
then by fire trucks that were dispatched to the area. Meanwhile, formations
from the BDF and the National Guard fanned out to secure the flanks of the
advancing police and secure the entry points to the roundabout. BDF
engineers and armoured units also advanced down the King Faisal Highway
and the Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman Road to remove booby-traps that were
feared to have been placed there during the previous days and to clear
roadblocks and other objects obstructing traffic. By 07:46, the roundabout
was under the full control of government forces.
532. Upon entering the GCC Roundabout and the adjacent areas, units
from all three armed services participating in the operation (police, BDF and
National Guard) began searching for booby-traps, explosives and other
weapons that were left in the area. This search uncovered large numbers of
Molotov cocktails, metal rods, knives, and other sharp objects.
533. As police continued to search the GCC Roundabout and the
surrounding areas, two police officers, Mr ‘Asheq Ahmed Mansour and Mr
Mohamed Farouk Abdulsamad, were run over multiple times at 08:00 by an
SUV in the open area to the west of the roundabout. Both police officers died
onsite.
534. Following the clearing of the GCC Roundabout, phase two of the
operation began, which aimed to clear the Bahrain Financial Harbour and the
nearby roads of demonstrators and roadblocks. Like the first phase, this part
of the operation was executed primarily by police supported and flanked by
BDF and National Guard units. As these forces proceeded, some of the
protesters in the area exploded gas cylinders in an attempt to hinder the
advance of these units. Nonetheless, the number of protesters remaining in
that area was significantly less than at the GCC Roundabout, and
consequently the location was cleared of protesters relatively quickly. No
servicemen were injured during this phase of the operation.
535. Phase three of the operation involved clearing SMC of protesters and
persons camped in the parking area adjacent to the Emergency Section. The
objective was to regain control of the facility. This operation, which began at
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