The Gulf's dinosaurs continued their battle for survival yesterday. In Bahrain they demolished the monument on the Pearl Roundabout which had been cleared of protesters on Wednesday. The official reason was to give the area a facelift and "boost the flow of traffic", though the foreign minister… Read more
Archive: bahrain
16th March 2011
Reports from Bahrain say that security forces launched an attack on the camp at Pearl Roundabout early this morning and cleared it of protesters (photographs here).
Helicopters were reported overhead and tents were set on fire. It is unclear whether the attack involved any of the Saudi forces who… Read more
16th March 2011
Writing in the Crossroads Arabia bog, John Burgess discusses the Saudi military intervention in Bahrain and concludes:
Once again, the Middle East demonstrates its problem with missed opportunities. Had Bahrain not treated its majority Shi’ite population less well than its Sunni minority, there… Read more
8th March 2011
Amid all the political turmoil in Bahrain, there hasn't been much coverage of a court case last week in which 49 men were given jail sentences ranging from one to six months, in connection with a gay party.
About 200 people were initially arrested "due to immoral activities" on February 3 when… Read more
21st September 2010
In the continuing crackdown in Bahrain, Ayatollah Hussein al-Najati – a prominent Shia religious figure – has been stripped of his citizenship. The passports of his wife and three children have also been revoked.
Najati is the local representative of the Iraqi grand ayatollah, Ali al-Sistani.… Read more
8th September 2010
The Gulf Cooperation Council – of which Bahrain is a member – has called on Britain to expel two Bahraini Shia opposition figures.
The pair – Hassan Mushaima of the Haq movement and Saeed al-Shehabi of the Bahrain Freedom Islamic Movement – are among 23 activists who were accused at the weekend of… Read more
7th September 2010
Tension in Bahrain ahead of the elections scheduled for next month.
Twenty-three people, reportedly Shia activists, have been accusedof "forming an illegal organisation" aiming to "overthrow the government and dissolve the constitution", inciting people to "overthrow and change the political… Read more
27th May 2010
Khadija Ahmed, a 32-year-old mother who owns what is thought to be Bahrain's first sex shop (discreetly known as "Khadija Fashion House"), was up in court on Monday, accused of insulting a customs officer during a dispute over the types of items she is allowed to import. The case was adjourned… Read more
21st May 2010
Bahrain has "temporarily frozen" the activities of al-Jazeera television inside the country for "breaching professional media norms and flouting the laws regulating the press and publishing".
The ban came to light on Tuesday when a team from al-Jazeera were prevented from entering Bahrain to… Read more
9th May 2010
Bahrain's unelected upper house of parliament has blocked a move by the lower house (elected and Islamist-dominated) to impose a total ban on the public sale and consumption of alcohol.
With backing from Bahrain's Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Shura Council last week amended the bill to say… Read more
ARAB ART ONLINE: Susan Hefuna: Al Sabr Gamil (Patience is Beautiful) 2007. Ink stained on wood 140 x 170 cm. More information | Click to enlarge
