The Bahrain military has open fired on thousands of protesters on Friday, according to AP. The number of dead and injured is unknown yet. The international community must not tolerate this atrocity. The Bahrain leaders and military commanders must face charges of crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court. If such barbaric act goes unpunished, dictators in other countries, including in Ethiopia, will continue to commit similar atrocities. Ethiopia’s tyrant Meles Zenawi must be smiling today.
MANAMA, Bahrain (Associated Press) — Soldiers opened fire Friday on thousands of protesters defying a government ban and streaming toward the landmark square that had been the symbolic center of the uprising to break the political grip of the Gulf nation’s leaders.
Officials at the main Salmaniya hospital said at least 50 people were injured, some with gunshot wounds. Some doctors and medics on emergency medical teams were in tears as they tended to the wounded. X-rays showed bullets still lodged inside victims.
“This is a war,” said Dr. Bassem Deif, an orthopedic surgeon examining people with bullet-shattered bones.
Protesters described a chaotic scene of tear gas clouds, bullets coming from many directions and people slipping in pools of blood as they sought cover. Some claimed the gunfire came from either helicopters or sniper nests, a day after riot police swept through the protest encampment in Pearl Square, killing at least five people and razing the tents and makeshift shelters that were inspired by the demonstrators in Cairo’s Tahrir Square.
An Associated Press cameraman saw army units shooting anti-aircraft weapons, fitted on top of armored personnel carriers, above the protesters, in apparent warning shots and attempts to drive them back from security cordons about 200 yards (200 meters) from the square.
Then the soldiers turned firearms on the crowd, one marcher said.
“People started running in all directions and bullets were flying,” said Ali al-Haji, a 27-year-old bank clerk. “I saw people getting shot in the legs, chest, and one man was bleeding from his head.”
“My eyes were full of tear gas, there was shooting and there was a lot of panic,” said Mohammed Abdullah, a 37-year-old businessman taking part in the protest.
condemns violence in Bahrain, Libya and Yemen
US President Barack Obama is condemning reports of violence in response to protests in Bahrain, Libya and Yemen. He is calling on the governments of those countries to show restraint.
Obama said the governments of the three countries should respect the rights of citizens demonstrating peacefully in the aftermath of Egypt’s uprising. He expressed condolences to the families of those killed.
The president’s statement was read aloud by White House press secretary Jay Carney to reporters traveling with the president on Air Force One from California to Oregon.
Crown Prince Al Khalifa promises a national dialogue
(BBC) — Witnesses said the army fired live rounds and tear gas, and officials said at least 25 people had been hurt.
Many of the protesters are calling for the overthrow of the royal family.
Crown Prince Sheikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa appeared on state TV on Friday to promise a national dialogue once calm has returned.
The prince, who is also deputy supreme commander of the army, called for everyone to withdraw from the streets.
The BBC’s Caroline Hawley, in Manama, says the funeral procession of one of the dead protesters turned into another anti-government demonstration.
The mourners were trying to make their way to the Salmaniya Hospital, where their injured colleagues are being treated.
But they came under fire as they passed close to Pearl Square, which has been sealed off by the army for the past day to prevent further large-scale demonstrations.
An eyewitness told al-Jazeera TV that the authorities gave no warning.
“They just started shooting us. Now there is more than 20 injured in the hospital. One guy has already passed away because he got shot in his head,” said the witness.