(ANSAmed) - DUBAI, APRIL 19 - The appeal made by crown prince
Salman Bin Hamad Al Khalifa to make Bahrain rather than one or
the other political party this weekend's winner has fallen on
deaf ears.
The three days of anger that had been announced by an opposition
movement, ''the youth of February 14'', a reference to the
anniversary of the popular uprising in 2011 that was harshly
repressed by the kingdom's armed forces, exploded as was feared.
The upheaval coincides with the arrival of the Grand Prix in Manama for this season's fourth race. Some members of the Force India team were involved in clashes between police and demonstrators last evening in the Shiite suburbs of the capital. A Molotov cocktail was hurled towards the car they were driving in, although the car was not the actual target. Two technicians of the Indian team have already left the oil island ''for safety reasons." The MRS team, which participates in the Porch SuperCup series, has declined the invitation to go to Bahrain. Tensions rose in the past days in the emirate, which has a large Shiite majority but is ruled by a Sunni royal household, accused of discrimination of Shiites, when the authorities started a ''preventive'' campaign of arrests. Around 80 anti-Grand Prix activists have been jailed, triggering last night's protests. The large Shiite opposition party al Wefaq has not openly joined the protests, but has announced that it wants to use the spotlights on the Grand Prix to claim the rights of Shiites in the country. (ANSAmed).
The upheaval coincides with the arrival of the Grand Prix in Manama for this season's fourth race. Some members of the Force India team were involved in clashes between police and demonstrators last evening in the Shiite suburbs of the capital. A Molotov cocktail was hurled towards the car they were driving in, although the car was not the actual target. Two technicians of the Indian team have already left the oil island ''for safety reasons." The MRS team, which participates in the Porch SuperCup series, has declined the invitation to go to Bahrain. Tensions rose in the past days in the emirate, which has a large Shiite majority but is ruled by a Sunni royal household, accused of discrimination of Shiites, when the authorities started a ''preventive'' campaign of arrests. Around 80 anti-Grand Prix activists have been jailed, triggering last night's protests. The large Shiite opposition party al Wefaq has not openly joined the protests, but has announced that it wants to use the spotlights on the Grand Prix to claim the rights of Shiites in the country. (ANSAmed).
