4 Indians killed in Bahrain arson

Sonny Abraham in Dubai

Four Indians, including two children, were killed in an arson attack on a store in Bahrain on Friday, newspapers in Manama said on Saturday, as reports reaching Dubai spoke of renewed unrest in the Gulf state.

The Gulf Daily News said the victims included K V Paulose (41), his wife Aleyamma and their son Sandeep (10). Sandeep's friend Ranjit Jayaprakash (11), who was visiting the family, also died, the report said. Both boys were students at the Indian school in Bahrain.

Paulose's two daughters, Sanitha, five, and Sajitha, three, were rescued, but have been left orphans, the newspaper said.

Earlier, a statement by the Bahraini interior ministry said four Asians were killed in the fire which broke out at an upholstery store, Abdul Hasan Abdulla and Sons, in Manama. It did not mention the nationalities of the victims.

The flames and smoke reached some residential flats in the building, asphyxiating the four victims, the ministry said. It said a fifth victim, also an Asian, was taken to the Salmaniya hospital in a ''critical condition''. The newspaper identified him as a Filipino.

Bangladeshis and Indians have been victims of similar attacks in two years of political unrest in the island nation.

Civil defence personnel rushed to the scene and put off the fire before it could spread further, the statement said.

The ministry said investigations were underway to identify the culprits responsible for the attack and bring them to justice.

The Gulf Daily News said Paulose, who had been living in Bahrain since 1981, was a salesman in an auto spare parts shop. His wife was teaching at the Indian school on a temporary assignment.

According to the report, the couple managed to save one of their daughters before collapsing in the smoke while searching for their other children. The second daughter was rescued by neighbours after fire brigade personnel passed a safety ladder to them.

The Paulose family's flat had no balcony, and this hindered the fire brigade's efforts to reach them with the help of a ladder, the report said.

Ranjit was the son of Jayaprakash, who works for an insurance company in Manama, the report said. Several other people were evacuated by the fire brigade from the building, the newspaper added.

Trouble broke out in the island-nation in December 1994, after the arrest of cleric Sheikh Ali Salman. Several people, including three policemen, have died in sporadic incidents since then. No major incidents have been reported in the last many months.

UNI