Report of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry

Report of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry
attempted to run over police officers with their cars. The police responded by
firing tear gas, rubber bullets and shotgun rounds. The operation lasted 20-30
minutes, after which all protesters had been evacuated and dispersed to
neighbouring streets and alleys.
232. It was subsequently discovered that police had fatally shot the
following three individuals: Mr Mahmood Maki Ahmed Abutaki; Mr Ali
Mansoor Ahmed Ahmed Khudair; and Mr Ali Ahmed Abdulla Ahmed. They
had all sustained fatal wounds caused by shotgun pellets fired at close range.
According to MoI reports and investigations, these three victims had been
among those who refused to evacuate the GCC Roundabout and participated,
in conjunction with others, in assaulting police who were then compelled to
fire shotgun rounds at them in self-defence. 240
233. Investigations undertaken by the MoI following the clearing operation
revealed that over 50 demonstrators had sustained various types of injuries,
while 47 police were wounded, some severely, during the confrontations.
Post-operation searches of the roundabout found four pistols and bullets as
well as large quantities of knives, daggers, swords and other sharp objects in
the area. While there were no reports of police sustaining gunshot wounds,
many were injured by sharp objects similar to those found at the roundabout.
Some police officers sustained wounds when protestors attempted to run them
over with their vehicles.
234. At 04:20 a group of protesters gathered on the King Faisal Highway
and began to march towards the GCC Roundabout, which was now under the
complete control of government security services. According to MoI reports,
those protesters assaulted a security patrol on duty in the Gufool area by
throwing rocks and Molotov cocktails at the patrol, and attempted to seize a
weapon carried by one of its personnel. The police fired at the protesters,
leading to the death of Mr Issa Abdul Hussein Ali Hassan who sustained
injuries caused by a shotgun round fired at his head from very close proximity
(estimated to be a few centimetres). This raised the total number of civilian
fatalities during the events that occurred in Bahrain to six cases up to this
time.
235. Around 500 protesters later gathered in the Naim neighbourhood and
attempted to re-enter the GCC Roundabout, but police confronted and
dispersed the group. By 17:45, eight armoured vehicles from the Bahrain
National Guard were deployed in the vicinity of the roundabout in the
direction of the Seef district to provide support for police units stationed in the
area. In addition, the BDF announced that some of its units would be
dispatched to heighten security at vital locations in the capital.
236. That afternoon, an MoI spokesperson delivered a presentation on
Bahrain Television about the events at the GCC Roundabout. The
presentation was accompanied by footage taken during the operation to
evacuate the roundabout. The spokesperson explained that the demonstration
at the roundabout had been unauthorised and that security forces had
240 The facts of these cases are discussed in detail in Chapter VI, Section A.
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