Bahraini Shia sentenced to death, 8 imprisoned

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - A Bahraini court has sentenced a Shia protester to death and six others to life in prison for allegedly being involved in the last year killing of a police officer.On Wednesday, the court also sentenced two others to five and six years in jail in connection with the same case. The death of police officer Mohamed Atef occurred on February 14, 2013.Reports say the officer died after he was killed during clashes between anti-government protesters and security forces in a village near the capital, Manama.The defendants have also been convicted of taking part in an “unlicensed protest.”The sentence for the Shia protester comes as death sentences in Bahrain are usually commuted to life imprisonment.This comes days after a court handed 15-year jail terms to two people for attempting to kill police officers.Since anti-government protests erupted in Bahrain in early 2011, many Shias have been tried and imprisoned. Reports say at least 3,000 people, including women and children, are currently in jail.About 500 political prisoners at the Houdh al-Jaf detention center have reportedly gone on a hunger strike ahead of a planned visit by a delegation of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.On March 14, 2011, soldiers from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates invaded the country to assist the Bahraini government in its violent crackdown on the protesters calling for reforms and a constitutional monarchy.According to local sources, scores of people have been killed and injured since./129