Bahrain food poisoning victim dies

A Bahraini man died in hospital on Friday, nearly a week after he was treated for food-poisoning.

Jaffar Abdul Jabbar Hassan, 23, was one of at least 750 people treated in the island's biggest mass poisoning case ever, caused by a contaminated egg-and-mayonnaise sandwiches served at a wedding party in a Sitra village last week.

The diabetic Hassan had to be taken repeatedly to the hospital since the incident. His condition was made worse because of his sickle cell anemia condition.

Local dailies, however, quoted sources in the Salmaniya Medical Complex as saying that the victim "might still be alive if he had not refused to be admitted to the hospital with a fever on Thursday". He returned later the same day when the fever was worse but hospital staff was unable to save him.

Sources at the Ministry of Health say all other food poisoning patients had been treated and released. Meanwhile, investigations are still continuing into the cause of the contamination.