Four Shiite protesters out of seven have been sentenced to be executed by a Bahraini military court for killing two policemen during anti-government demonstrations in March 2011, reports the state media.

The three other demonstrators who were also on trial have been sentenced to life time jail after they were charged for being involved in the deaths of the two security officials.

Thursday’s verdicts are the first related to the uprising against the Gulf kingdom’s ruling family, which begain in February, reports Al Jazeera.

The seven under arrest have been convicted ‘behind closed doors’ for murdering government officials.

Ali Abdullah Hasan, Qasim Hassan Mattar, Saeed Abdul Jalil Saeed, and Abdul Aziz Abdullah Ibrahim are the four defendants to be executed whose names were released by a Shia opposition official.  While Issa Abdullah Kazem, Sadiq Ali Mahdi, and Hussein Jaafar Abdul Karim were sentenced lifetime prison.

Shia anti-government activists say this is a severe punishment.  Sheikh Ali Salman,  president of Bahrain’s Al Wefaq, the largest Shia political group in the country, told Al Jazeera that the punishments did not fit the crime.

“I believe that these sentences should be revised and the international community must intervene to stop this,” he said.

Hundreds of Bahraini protesters have been thrown into jails for demonstrating against the government since the last month.

The government of Bahrain backed up by Saudi Arab has declared martial law in the last month to quell dissent.

Read it at Al Jazeera and Huff Post.