Ali Hussain Neamah and Hussam AlHaddad, both under the age of 18, were killed in separate protests over the last 40 days in Bahrain.
(BCHR/IFEX) – 29 September 2012 – The Bahrain Center for Human Rights expresses in the strongest terms its condemnation of the murder of the child Ali Hussain Neamah (17 years old), shot dead by riot police 40 days after the similar killing of Hussam AlHaddad (16 years old). These deaths are a result of the continued use of excessive force and deadly weapons in dealing with peaceful protesters, and the spread of the culture of impunity.
Ali Neamah died following a shot at close range by riot police on 28 September 2012 in the village of Saddad, northwest of the Bahraini capital Manama, after a peaceful protest was attacked by riot police. The death certificate confirms that death was caused by shotgun injuries to the back. The ministry of interior confirmed the death and its responsibility for shooting Ali in a statement. However, it claimed that the police were attacked with Molotov cocktails and the “police responded using only necessary and proportionate force to restore order”. Multiple injuries on Ali’s back are evidence that the killing AlHaddad was not an act of self-defence, as indicated in the Ministry of Interior’s statement.
Policemen fired tear-gas and stun grenades at relatives and friends who were trying to check his condition after he was shot. Media on the scene were shot at as well.
Eye witnesses said that Ali was dragged for 20 meters on the ground from the spot where he fell, and that the ambulance arrived on the scene an hour and ten minutes later. Bruises were visible on his face and abdomen.
Other protesters, including a child of less than 10 years old, were injured with shotgun during the same attack. At least 15 civilians have been killed by police gunfire since the start of the protests in February 2011, including four children under the age of 18 years.
The murder of Ali comes a day after the acquittal of two policemen for the murder of protesters. Over 18 months after the start of the deadly crackdown on protesters which led to the death of more than 80 civilians, only one security man was found guilty with “accidental murder” by a criminal court in Bahrain and he was given a light sentence of 7 years’ imprisonment.
The Bahrain Center for Human Rights calls on the international community, especially close allies to Bahrain like the United States and the United Kingdom, to take the necessary actions to immediately put an end to the severe violations of human rights in Bahrain, and the extra-judicial killing of unarmed civilians. We also call on the US and other countries who are selling arms to Bahrain to immediately stop the sale of arms, as they are silent contributors to the violations of the Bahraini regime.
