MANAMA: A police vehicle was vandalized by 40 unidentified masked men in the village of Duraz on Friday night.
“The men hurled Molotov cocktails and pelted stones at the patrol vehicle. The attackers were dressed in black and failed to kill anyone,” a spokesman from the Interior Ministry said.
An investigation has been launched to trace the men. Tension is brewing in Bahrain since the arrest of two opposition figures — Hassan Mushaima and Sheikh Mohammed Habib Al-Maqdad — last month.
The two men have been charged with funding a terrorist group, planning to overthrow the regime and inciting hatred. The suspects, who if proved guilty would face three to five years’ jail sentence, have rejected the charges.
During a high profile hearing last month, protesters clashed with Special Forces outside a court where their case was being heard. The hearing was then postponed to March 23.
According to eyewitnesses, Special Forces fired tear gas at worshippers who gathered for Friday prayers at a mosque in the Salmaniya area where Mushaima is a key preacher.
Earlier this month, six political associations staged a massive rally calling for the two-men’s release. Sporadic unrest continues in some villages in the Northern governorate.
This is the third attack on a police patrol car since 2007.
The Bahrain Cabinet then decided to come down heavily on the use of Molotov cocktails during protests and has since enforced strict punishments for anyone caught with them.
