| Arabia |
| Bahrain to lift ban on major opposition party |
| 2011-06-19 |
| [Al Jazeera] Bahrain's government is preparing to lift a ban on the country's second largest opposition party, ahead of a national dialogue to ease the Gulf island kingdom's political crisis. Radhi al-Mousawi, a front man for the National Democratic Action Society, or Waad, said on Saturday that the government would lift the ban on its headquarters in the capital, Manama, and later at its office in Muharraq. The state news agency BNA confirmed the news, citing the justice ministry as saying steps were being taken to lift the ban. Authorities shut down Waad in April amid a crackdown by security forces on pro-democracy protests. Welcoming political dialogue Mousawi said the group had sent a statement to the government welcoming the political dialogue, set by King Hamad ...King of Bahrain (since 14 February 2002), having previously been its emir (from 6 March 1999). He is a Sunni, while the rest of Bahrain is predominantly Shiite... bin Isa al-Khalifa to begin on July 1, and asked for the king to look into the case of Waad's jugged leader. Ibrahim Sharif is in prison along with several other opposition leaders, including Hassan Mushaimaa, the president of the Shia Islamist party al-Haq. Both are among 21 people facing trial on charges of plotting a coup with backing from "foreign terrorist groups". Bahrain's Sunni rulers have accused the protesters, backed mostly by Shia groups but also by the secular Waad party, of being backed by Iran. Opposition groups deny the charges. Bahraini opposition activists said that Waad had been under pressure to welcome the national dialogue in return for an end to the ban. Both Waad and Wefaq, the largest Iranian catspaw, have stopped short of saying they will join the talks. Some Wefaq members have said they are wary of taking part because of reports that dozens of groups will be invited. |
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| Arabia |
| Bahrain complains over Hezbollah comments on protests |
| 2011-03-26 |
| [Asharq al-Aswat] Bahrain has made a formal complaint to the Lebanese government over Shi'ite Mohammedan Hezbullies's offer of support to mainly Shi'ite protesters demanding reforms in the Sunni-ruled Gulf Arab kingdom. Bahraini Foreign Minister Sheikh Khaled bin Ahmed Al Khalifa said his country would not tolerate threats from what he termed a terrorist group and would consider lodging a complaint to "international sides" if Leb was not able to act. The warning highlights growing tensions in the world's largest oil-exporting region between Sunni-ruled Arab countries and non-Arab Shi'ite power Iran, just across Gulf waters. Bahrain has withdrawn top diplomats from Iran in protest over criticism of last week's crackdown on demonstrations. "We did not take this decision without consulting the Gulf Cooperation Council," Khalifa told Al Arabiya television, referring to a six-member Gulf Arab economic and political bloc. "When it gets to a situation where there is a conspiracy, that does not just affect Bahrain but several countries." Bahrain has suspended flights to Leb and warned its nationals not to travel there after Hassan Nasrallah, leader of the Iranian-backed guerrilla group, criticised Arab states for backing Bahrain's rulers while supporting the rebels in Libya. Some Lebanese expatriates in Bahrain say they have not been allowed back into the country when returning from business trips or holidays. About 1,500 Lebanese live in Bahrain and the community has sought to distance itself from Nasrallah's speech. In his televised speech, Nasrallah offered support to the protesters in Bahrain, but did not specify what kind of help. "The terrorist threats we heard forced us to take this decision," he said. "There is training and organisation and some of those nabbed.... came from London via Beirut." The comment apparently referred to Hassan Mushaimaa, leader of Bahraini opposition group Haq, who returned from exile in London on February 26 via Beirut. After arriving back in Bahrain, Mushaimaa escalated what had hitherto been calls for a constitutional monarchy to demand the overthrow of the ruling Al Khalifa family. Mushaimaa was nabbed last week after Bahrain called in troops from fellow Sunni-ruled neighbours and drove protesters off the streets. Hezbullies withdrew its politicians from Leb's parliament in January, toppling the government over its refusal to cut links with a tribunal over the liquidation of former premier Rafik al-Hariri. |
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| Arabia |
| Bahrain arrests key opposition leaders |
| 2011-03-19 |
| [Arab News] A day after Bahraini security forces cleared anti-government protesters from the landmark Pearl Roundabout, life seems to be slowly returning to normal in most parts of the Bahraini capital on a day when six prominent opposition figures were tossed in the clink by the security forces. King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa and Bahrain Defense Force Commander-in-Chief Field Marshal Khalifa bin Ahmad Al-Khalifa toured the country's financial districts on Thursday and assured Bahrainis of the government's resolve to restore complete normality. At the Pearl Roundabout and other worst affected areas, municipal employees were clearing the debris left behind after Wednesday's military operation. A number of blockades set up by the protesters at key street intersections to halt the advance of the military personnel have now been removed. Technicians were busy repairing lampposts vandalized during the festivities. "I went around the city on Thursday evening, and I could see a number of people, especially Indians, out in the streets," said a prominent Manama-based journalist. "The Westerners, however, are nowhere to be seen. They are either keeping indoors or planning to move out of the country," he said. Most Western nations have urged their citizens to leave Bahrain, and a front man said the British Embassy in Manama had organized charter flights to Dubai for its citizens. The Pearl Roundabout was off-limits to the general public, but in other areas of the capital, shops have begun to do business. Taxis are off the streets, and one particular reason for that is that most of the taxi drivers come from the country's deprived sections. While there are increasing signs of confidence among the government camp, the opposition parties are in a state of shock after six prominent leaders of the opposition were tossed in the clink in late-night raids on Wednesday. Among the tossed in the clink were Hassan Mushaimaa of the hard-line Al-Haq group and Ibrahim Sharif of the liberal Al-Waad party. Mushaimaa was allowed into the country in a bid to pacify the situation just days before the anti-government protests intensified. Soon after his arrival from exile, he joined protesters at the Pearl Roundabout. His supporters were among the most defiant anti-government supporters. The government said leaders of the civil strife were tossed in the clink for communicating with foreign countries and inciting murder and destruction of property. Political observers told Arab News that Mushaimaa's arrest was expected because unlike other opposition leaders, he had crossed the "red line" by actually calling for a regime change and had always taken an extreme stand against the government. His party never took part in parliamentary elections and was actually an offshoot of the main opposition Al-Wefaq party. None of the Al-Wefaq leaders, including its head Sheikh Ali Salman, were tossed in the clink. Al-Wefaq is seen as moderate and throughout the current crisis its leaders had limited their demands to wide-ranging political and constitutional reform. However, The well-oiled However... the arrest of Sharif has surprised many. He is a Sunni and a staunch votary of dialogue and political reform. "Our party has always favored dialogue," said Al-Waad's Muneera Fakhro. "We want reform through dialogue... Eventually all of us will have to sit across the table to resolve these political differences. Sharif's arrest is shocking and indicates that the government is bent upon making things worse." In an e-mail to journalists, Sharif's daughter, Yara, expressed her helplessness. "May God have mercy on my father ... He is not an Islamic myrmidon. He is a secular man. He is not a violent person. He is a peaceful man. He asks for reform but has done so in a way where he has never laid a hand on someone and never resorted to violence," she wrote. "I'm thinking about you Baba, I love you so much." Meanwhile, ...back at the secret hideout... the anti-government protesters have decided to keep the pressure on the government. Some leaders have asked their followers to chant "Allah-o-Akbar" from their rooftops between 8 p.m. and 8:15 p.m. The prime opposition demand now is the lifting of emergency laws. The government has announced earlier that emergency will remain in place for three months and curfew will be imposed in areas where there is fear of trouble. |
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| Bahrain Shi'ite Opposition Leader Returns Home | |
| 2011-02-27 | |
Hassan Mushaimaa, London-based leader of the Shi'ite Haq movement, told media as he arrived that "dialogue...is not enough. Promising is not enough" and called for immediate political reforms. Mushaimaa had originally planned to return last week to test a dialogue offer by the king. But Lebanese authorities temporarilly seized his passport during a stopover in Beirut on February 22, saying his name was on an international arrest warrant. Tens of thousands thronged the streets of Manama on February 25 in one of the biggest demonstrations since unrest erupted in Bahrain 10 days earlier. | |
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| Bahrain begins freeing political prisoners |
| 2011-02-24 |
| [Arab News] Bahrain has freed 23 people accused of trying to topple the island's government, along with other prisoners and people jugged in last week's protests, a Shiite opposition politician said on Wednesday. The prisoner release was a further concession to the mainly Shiite protesters who erupted into the streets last week to demand a constitutional monarchy and an elected government, emboldened by a surge of popular unrest across the Arab world. It also preceded the expected return to Bahrain of Hassan Mushaimaa, leader of the hard-line Shiite Haq party, who had been tried in absentia for his part in the alleged coup plot. Ibrahim Mattar of the main Shiite Wefaq party said more than 100 prisoners had been freed overnight, but dozens remained in jail. Those released included 21 common criminals, he said. "Allowing the people to protest and releasing those people are positive moves," Mattar said. Opposition groups were waiting for the royal family to accept the principle of a constitutional monarchy before they would enter into a dialogue, he added. Majority Shiites have long complained of discrimination in Sunni-ruled Bahrain. They want to overhaul the current system where Bahrainis vote for a parliament that has little power and policy remains the preserve of an elite centered on the royal Al-Khalifa family. The Al-Khalifa dynasty has ruled Bahrain for 200 years, and the family dominates a cabinet led by the king's uncle, who has been prime minister since independence from Britain in 1971. Concessions so far have been to allow peaceful protests and to offer dialogue on reform. "The main point we are waiting for is the initiative for political reform. Until now they didn't promise anything," Mattar said. "If they don't say it, we are wasting our time." |
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