during widespread demonstrations on Wednesday. Later, the ministry announced that Mohammed which the statement called a "rioter" died of natural causes at Salmaniya Medical Complex. "As soon as Yagoub was arrested he stated that he suffered from Sickle Cell Anemia. Police immediately called an ambulance which took him to a hospital. He was provided with all necessary and appropriate medical care but he passed away as a result of his disease." The New York Times reported Western intelligence officials expressing concern that Ahmed Chalabi, the Iraqi Shiite politician, was working with the leading opposition group in Bahrain, Al Wefaq National Islamic Society. A French intelligence official said, “When we hear that some members of the opposition are in touch with Hezbollah or with shady figures like the Iraqi Ahmed Chalabi, of whom we think he is acting on behalf of Iran, then this worries us”. The connection between Chalabi and Al Wefaq was acknowledged by Jawad Fairooz, secretary general of Wefaq and a former member of Parliament in Bahrain. Fairooz said, “Mr Chalabi has helped us with contacts in Washington like other people have done and we thank them”. 29 January Bahrain's Cabinet said on 29 January that it plans to draft a law that would impose a sentence of as long as 15 years in jail on protesters who assault policemen. Minister of Cabinet Affairs Kamal Mohammed said the government expressed “deep concern” over the increasing violence during unauthorized protests lately, according to state-run news agency BNA. "Targeting security men obliges me to seek greater legal protection for the public security personnel. Right now, there aren't sufficient legal deterring texts," Sheikh Rashed said. "I believe that the crime of attacking security personnel is a felony punishable by up to 15 years in jail, and that should include perpetrators and inciters," he added. 30 January Anti-government protesters clashed with Bahraini riot police after the funeral of a 17-year-old who had died the previous week in police custody. Many residents of Sitra were doused in tear gas as police faced off against youths who blocked roads, set tyres alight and threw petrol bombs. Several thousand mourners chanted "The signs say that the tyrant's day is approaching" at the funeral. March 2012 9 March Hundreds of thousands protested in one of the biggest anti-government rallies to date. According to CNN, the march "filled a four-lane highway between Duraz and Muksha". The government