Some of the wounded are reportedly in critical condition.
Nine protesters were also arrested during the attack on Tuesday for involvement in anti-regime demonstrations in the region.
Saudi officials accuse the detainees of “shooting members of security forces” in Eastern Province.
On Monday, Saudi security forces detained Zaher al-Zaher, a social activist, in the town of Awamiyah in the Eastern Province.
Regime forces also killed 22-year-old protester Essam Mohamed Abu Abdellah and wounded three others in Awamiyah on January 12.
Since February 2011, Saudi protesters have held demonstrations on an almost regular basis in the oil-rich Eastern Province, mainly in Qatif and Awamiyah, calling for the release of all political prisoners, freedom of expression and assembly, and an end to widespread discrimination.
However, the demonstrations have turned into protest rallies against the Al Saud regime, especially since November 2011, when Saudi security forces killed five protesters and injured many others in Eastern Province.
Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, a prominent Shia cleric in Saudi Arabia, has warned the kingdom against the brutal crackdown on protesters in Eastern Province and called on the Al Saud regime to stop bloodshed.
Saudi Arabia is a state party to the Arab Charter on Human Rights. Article 24 of the charter states that “every citizen has the right… to freely pursue a political activity [and] to freedom of association and peaceful assembly.”
Saudi female activist dies in car crash
A Saudi Arabian woman who defied the kingdom’s prohibition on women driving has died in a car accident in the country’s northern Hael province.
“One woman was immediately killed and her companion who was driving the car was hospitalized after she suffered several injuries,” police spokesman Abdulaziz al-Zunaidi told AFP.
The woman’s death comes months after a 32-year-old computer security consultant was arrested and detained for 10 days after posting a video of herself on YouTube as she drove in the eastern city of Khobar.
Manal Al-Sherif pioneered a female movement by starting a Facebook page called ‘Teach me how to drive so I can protect myself.’
Sherif and the other campaigners focused on the importance of women driving in times of emergencies and the high expense of hiring a driver, especially for low-income families.
On their page, the group says women joining the campaign should not challenge the authorities if they are stopped and questioned and should abide by the country’s dress code.
Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world that bans women — both Saudi and foreign — from driving.
While the state has no written law banning women from driving, the country’s law requires citizens to use a locally issued license while in the country. Such licenses are not issued to women, making it effectively illegal for them to drive.
