Fadhel Abas gets injuries while resisting to arrest

MANAMA: The General Director of Criminal Investigation and Forensic Science said that on January 25, the Operations Center received notification of the death of detainee Fadhel Abas Muslim, 20.

On January 9, the Interior Ministry reported that Fadhel Abas was injured while resisting arrest in connection with a December 28 case involving a substantial amount of weapons and high-grade explosives smuggled into Bahrain via boat.

The police had arrested a number of suspects on January 8 in Al Markh on similar charges and learned that they were part of a group who used deserted buildings as meeting places to handoff weapons. After further investigation, police arrived at one of these buildings to interrupt a handoff and arrest those involved.

Two suspects were inside the building when police arrived. As they were attempting to flee in their car, the driver, Fadhel Abas, attempted to run over the policemen despite being warned off multiple times, both verbally and by warning shots. Finally, the police were forced to use their weapons to defend themselves and stop the oncoming car.

Fadhel Abas was injured by a gunshot wound to the head and was immediately referred to hospital. The passenger was arrested and referred to the Public Prosecutor.

The General Director announced that Fadhel Abas’ family was notified of the incident and that they had visited him at the hospital. He said that the investigation into the weapons and explosives case will continue until the additional suspects are identified and arrested.

The General Director expressed his dismay at the public announcements released by some groups that aimed at politicizing Fadhel Abas’ death and that encouraged the public to jump to inaccurate conclusions.

The General Director highlighted the importance of reinforcing the Ministry of Interior’s commitment to the rule of law, proper arrest and detention procedures and human rights principles. While he stated that the police recognize individual freedoms and the right to protest, he clarified that violent attacks with explosives and weapons are serious crimes rather than protests. Police will continue to fulfill their duty to protect the security of the nation from such attacks.