Report of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry

Chapter IV — Narrative of Events of February and March 2011
on 13 March contributed to the growing impression, particularly among
Sunnis, that the protest movement was no longer peaceful. Some opposition
groups have claimed in discussions with the Commission that these events,
especially the clashes that occurred at the university, were orchestrated, or at
least condoned, by the GoB. The Commission has not been able to verify
these claims, but the heightened sense of fear and the sense of breakdown of
law and order that developed among some Bahrainis and many Sunnis due to
these events was patent.
653. The situation was further exacerbated by the march organised on 11
March 2011 to Al-Riffa, where the Royal Court is situated. Despite the fact
that the major opposition parties, including Al Wefaq, did not condone this
march and organised a parallel rally in the vicinity of the GCC Roundabout,
the march on Al-Riffa led many in the GoB and among the Sunni community
to conclude that because of the radical demands of the protestors the room for
compromise had been diminished.
654. The final turning point took place when, starting in the early morning
of 13 March 2011, demonstrators at the Bahrain Financial Harbour obstructed
traffic along the King Faisal Highway. This escalation by protestors, which
essentially partitioned Manama, coincided with the failure of talks between
HRH the Crown Prince and opposition parties. These developments and the
gravely deteriorated state of law and order in Bahrain led the GoB to take
forceful measures to end demonstrations and restore order, beginning with the
arrival of the GCC-JSF on 14 March, the declaration of a State of National
Safety on 15 March, and the second clearance of the GCC Roundabout on 16
March.
2. Government Policy During the Events of
February and March 2011
655. The response by the GoB between 14 February and 31 March 2011 to
the unfolding situation may be divided to three stages. The first stage began
on 14 February and ended on 19 February with the reopening of the GCC
Roundabout to protestors. The second stage extended from 19 February till 14
March when the GCC-JSF arrived in Bahrain. The third and final stage was
during the period 14-31 March 2011.
656. The first stage began with the outbreak of demonstrations on the
morning of 14 February and ended with the reopening of the GCC
Roundabout on 19 February on the initiative of HRH the Crown Prince.
Starting on 14 February, the GoB resorted to a heavy deployment of its Public
Security Forces to disperse protestors. The practice of these security forces
units seemed to have been to surround towns and villages in which
demonstrations occurred and to block the exits from these locations so as to
contain demonstrations within those areas.
657. Inevitably, there were clashes between protestors and police when the
latter began to disperse the protestors. These clashes usually ended when
police used riot control techniques, such as firing tear gas, sound bombs,
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