Bahrain Freedom Movement

S. S. Police Severely beat Mr. Ahmed and break his jaw -When pleading for water he was force fed sand and pebbles

Bahrain Center for Human Rights

Urgent Appeal Ref.28/05/07

The Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR) is shocked to find yet another victim of the Special Security (S. S.) Police in the hospital. Today we received information about 46 year-old Hameed Yousef Ahmed who is currently being treated in the military hospital because of injuries reportedly caused by S. S. police. Among his injuries are a broken tooth, and a broken jaw.

Mr Ahmed, an unemployed Bahraini, said that he was on his way home to Sanabis on the 21st of May when he saw young men running away from the S. S. police. Minutes later he was seized by the security police and beaten. He told the BCHR that he was then taken by the security forces to Sanabis graveyard and got more beatings. After that he was handed over to another group of the S. S. police who took him and another man (Alkhabbaz, Ref.24/05/07) to the Exhibition center roundabout, beating them all the way there. When they reached the roundabout the two men were thrown on the ground and beaten.

Amongst the non Bahraini S. S. police, there was one who was dressed in traditional Arab clothes and he looked Bahraini. This man started stepping on Mr. Ahmed’s head. Mr. Ahmed continues:

“I started telling them that I was thirsty, I was pleading for water. The Bahraini-looking police told the others to open my mouth, and they filled my mouth with sand. In the sand there were pebbles and that caused my tooth to break. Then the same man turned his gun and hit me on my face with it, and broke my jaw.”

At that point there was a woman who was driving by, she stopped her car and asked the police to stop beating the two men. The S. S. police started swearing at her, hitting her car and damaging it, until she drove off. Finally, the two men were taken to Exhibition center police station, were the police took pictures for them, placed tear gas shells in front of them, and put masks on their faces, according to Mr. Ahmed.

Other than the broken jaw and tooth, Mr. Ahmed also suffers from difficulty in breathing, and bruises in his legs, knee cap, knees and ribs. Moreover, he complained that has no balance and therefore has great difficulty in standing or walking.

The BCHR is gravely concerned especially that this is the fourth injured victim of the S. S. police found in the hospital in the last few days. And there could be more victims who the BCHR does not know about yet.

The BCHR again urges the authorities to put an end to the use of excessive force and torture by its security forces, and to promptly and impartially investigate these cases and find and put on trial anyone who is involved in these atrocious acts. Finally the victims of such acts must be redressed and compensated.