Bahraini man dies following protests against executions

A young Bahraini man has died after police fired tear gas on people protesting against the execution of two activists.

2 min read

29 July, 2019

Bahraini security forces fired tear gas on protesters [Getty Archive]

Bahraini activists say a young man died after participating in protests against the execution of two men whose trial drew concern from UN human rights experts.

Protests broke out following Bahrain's execution of three men on Saturday despite pleas from the UN, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and other human rights organizations.

The protesters blocked roads and burned tyres, while calling for the fall of the regime and Bahraini King Hamad bin Khalifa, according to the German Press Agency.

The dead protester was identified as 22-year-old Mohammed Al-Miqdad by Bahraini opposition media. The Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD) says that he died on Sunday at a hospital after being found unconscious on the street shortly after the protests.

Bahraini opposition media said that he died as a result of inhaling tear gas but the Bahraini interior ministry announced that he had died of "natural causes".

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On Saturday, Bahraini authorities executed two opposition activists, Ali al-Arab and Ahmed al-Malali, for their alleged involvement in the 2017 killing of a police officer. Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said that their confessions were obtained under torture.

The third executed man was a Bangladeshi muezzin who confessed to the killing of the imam of a mosque.

Bahrain is a Shia majority country but has a Sunni ruling family. In 2011, the country witnessed an 'Arab Spring' uprising calling for democratic reform. The government responded with repressive measures including shooting of protesters and imprisonment, mass trials, and torture of opposition activists.

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