14-Year-Old Boy Killed in Bahrain Demo

A Bahraini Shiite teenage protester was fatally wounded on Wednesday when he was struck in the face by a tear gas canister fired by security forces, the opposition group Al-Wefaq said.

Jawad Ahmed al-Sheikh, 14, was hit in the Shiite village of Sitra during a small protest after Eid al-Fitr prayers, the Gulf kingdom's main Shiite opposition group said on its Facebook page.

It posted a picture of the dead teenager with his face covered in blood, saying the tear gas canister was fired from close range.

BNA state news agency cited police as saying it was notified by Sitra medical center that a "dead child was brought in at 9:15 am" and that people who carried the boy to the center "did not provide any information."

At the time the death was reported, police said, security forces "were not dealing with any outlaws in the area of Sitra, except for dispersing a group of 10 at around 1:15 am."

Police appealed for witnesses to come forward with information and said the incident was being investigated.

Sporadic protests have taken places in Shiite villages since security forces cracked down in mid-March on a month-long pro-democracy protest led by the Shiite majority of the kingdom ruled by a Sunni dynasty.

Al-Wefaq has also organized several rallies approved by authorities which appeared to have eased the security grip after mass arrests and dismissals from work and schools of Shiites accused of backing street protests.

Authorities say 24 people, including four policemen, were killed in the month of unrest. Four others died in custody.