Page 8 - Outdo Anderson News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

The people told us they were sleeping when the police moved in, they didn't realize the police were coming in to break up what until then had been a peaceful demonstration. then they said essentially pandemonium. people fled, tear gas was firing, shotguns were firing, and the triage room at the hospital now, the doctors and nurses are struggling to keep up with a number of casualties coming in. it is pandemonium at that hospital right now. >> nic, what is it the protestors are calling for in bahrain? >> reporter: this is a majority shia-sunni population here. the country is ruled by a sunni ru...

We're journalists here! i'm going. i'm going. i'm going. i'm going. i just got beat rather badly by a gang of thugs, and now i'm in a market place near the hotel where people are cowering in buildings. i mean, these people are not screwing around. >> cnn's nic robertson was on the scene, as well. nic, what do we know about what happened? >> reporter: anderson, we know that thousands of police and a military style operation, they were wearing combat riot gear, helmets, wielding riot shields, they also had tear gas guns.

>> reporter: there was a canister that looked like -- no, no, no. hey! journalists, journalists! no, no, no, no! journalists, journalists, journalists! [ inaudible ] all right, all right, all right! go, go, go, go! i'm going! i'm going, i'm going! i'm going! i'm going, i'm going!

A gang of thugs, and now i'm in a market place near the hotel where people are cowering in buildings. i mean, these people are not screwing around. >> cnn's nic robertson was on the scene, as well. when the tear gas hit. he joins us now. nic, what do we know about what happened? >> reporter: anderson, we know that thousands of police and a military style operation, they were wearing combat riot gear, helmets, wielding riot shields, they also had tear gas guns. we saw them firing the tear gas into the area. i've just been in the main hospital here where all the casualties are being brought in. ...

There is a hard crack down, more people are killed. they say that they would like more jobs, the economy is bad. they say they know the global economy is bad, but principally this is about a shia muslim population that has been dominated by a sunni royal family and they've had their rights, they say, downtrodden. they want better rights, they want better access to better jobs and better access to government jobs, and they want more jobs in the security forces, which mostly are shut out of right now, anderson. >> how long have protesters been in that square and are there protesters still in tha...