Bahrain Feature: "Collective Punishment" on Al-Eker Village After Policeman Killed

Claimed footage from Bahrain State TV of Thursday night's explosion --- circled in red about two minutes into the video --- which killed one policeman and injured another

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It has been another tense day in the Kingdom.

As we reported last night, from multiple sources, Al-Eker village has been under a state of near-siege since late Thursday night after a policeman died there. Throughout Friday, there were reports of house raids, arrests and violence by security forces --- including shooting into properties --- while human rights defenders were prevented from entering Al-Eker by police. Today, citizens are reportedly still being prevented from entering or leaving the village.

Opposition society AlWefaq has issued an "urgent appeal to the international community and all human rights organizations around the world ... to save lives of Bahrainis in Al-Eker". There are reports that a pregnant woman was forced to deliver her baby at home after police refused to allow her to go to hospital. According to Zainab AlKhawaja of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights, mourners attempting to access Al-Eker graveyard for the burial of Mahdi Ali Marhoon, who reportedly died of tear gas inhalation, were "attacked by riot police". There are also reports that Buri village is now under lockdown.

Opposition activists are describing this as "collective punishment" following the policeman's death. Many are also voicing suspicion about the circumstances and are calling for an independent inquiry.

The policeman was named as Imran Ahmed Mohammed, 19. The Interior Minister, Public Security chief and senior Interior Ministry officals attended his funeral yesteday. Bahrain state media described it as a "majestic funeral procession" for a "martyr of duty". In separate statements, the Prime Minister, the Interior Minister, the Human Rights Minister, the Speaker of the Representatives Council, and the Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council, all condemned the attack.

Last night Bahrain State Television aired footage (see top of video) they claim shows the explosion which killed the policeman, and injured another. In a statement, the Ministry of Interior claimed the explosion was caused by a "homemade bomb". The Interior Minister said:

We have identified a number of suspects in the case. We won't stop at just determining who committed the crime, but we will also determine who orchestrated the explosion and who trained the individuals in their bomb-making skills.

So far, seven arrests have been made, according to the Ministry of Interior.

The Ministry of Interior reported another police injury today:

On-duty policeman accidentally injured himself w/ birdshot pellets.He was admitted to hospital for treatment #Bahrain

— Ministry of Interior (@moi_bahrain) October 20, 2012

Meanwhile, King Hamad returned to Bahrain today, having been in Kuwait since Monday night, to attend the 1st Asian Cooperation Dialogue.