Friday, February 7, 2014

Bahraini protesters rap regime crackdown on demos

People have taken to streets in Bahrain to protest against the Al Khalifa regime’s crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators. On Friday, Saudi-backed security forces used tear gas against the protesters, who were holding a demonstration in the predominantly Shia village of Bani Jamrah in the northwest. Carrying pictures of two protesters slain by the regime, the demonstrators formed a human pyramid at the end of the rally and waved the Bahraini flags. The village has been the scene of a brutal crackdown, with regime forces opening fire on unarmed protesters on many occasions. Similar protests were also held in the village of A'ali, south of the capital Manama, and in the northeastern island of Sitra. Police fired tear gas and stun grenades at anti-regime protesters in Sitra. In A'ali, the demonstrators called for the release of prisoners jailed by the regime as they carried placards reading, “We will never surrender.” Protesters across the tiny Persian Gulf country are expected to hold several demonstrations this week to mark the third anniversary of the uprising against the regime. Since mid-February 2011, thousands of pro-democracy protesters have held numerous demonstrations in the streets of Bahrain, calling for the Al Khalifa royal family to relinquish power. On March 14, 2011, troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates invaded the country to assist the Bahraini government in its crackdown on peaceful protesters. According to local sources, scores of people have been killed and hundreds arrested. Physicians for Human Rights says doctors and nurses have been detained, tortured, or disappeared because they have "evidence of atrocities committed by the authorities, security forces, and riot police" in the crackdown on anti-government protesters.

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