Thousands of Bahrainis turned out to vote in yesterday's (September 24) parliament by-election, braving threats and intimidation to cast their ballots for the 14 seats available in the Northern, Manama and Central Governorates.

Tailbacks were reported on most of Bahrain's highways as police blocked access to several areas amid tight security.

At least 22 people were arrested for attempting to derail voting, with oil poured on roads around the polling centre in Sanabis and stones thrown at vehicles belonging to voters in A'ali

A policeman was also severely injured after driving over spikes strewn across main roads by saboteurs.

More than 187,000 people had been eligible to vote in the vacant constituencies.

But despite the threats the turnout, including the results in all of Bahrain's 40 constituencies, was 51 per cent. – TradeArabia News Service