Revolutie in Bahrein #2 Golflanden sturen troepen, Iran niet blij

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Iran warns - keep out of Bahrain

AFP - Tehran - Iran's foreign ministry on Tuesday officially told Manama, Riyadh and Washington that military intervention by Gulf troops in Bahrain was "unacceptable," state television's website reported.

Iran summoned the ambassadors of Saudi Arabia and Switzerland, which represents US interests in the Islamic republic, as well as Bahrain's charge d'affaires, to convey the message, the report said.

"The entrance of Saudi forces in Bahrain will only further complicate the situation and transform an internal crisis into a regional one," Hossein Amir Abdolahian, head of the ministry's Persian Gulf and Middle East Affairs department, told Saudi envoy Mohammad al-Kalabi.

Riyadh on Monday sent troops to Bahrain to help the regime control Shi'ite-led pro-democracy opposition protesters, who have said any foreign force would be treated as an invading army.

Forces from the United Arab Emirates were also present, and Bahraini television showed convoys of unmarked, desert-brown armoured vehicles crossing from Saudi's Eastern Province into Bahrain, home of the US Fifth Fleet.

Iran also protested against the "illegal" US action in "supporting the intervention of foreign troops" in minority Sunni-ruled Bahrain, the state TV website quoted the ministry as saying in a separate report.

"The US support for military intervention is contrary to international laws... Thus the Islamic Republic of Iran considers America responsible for the dangerous consequences of this illegal action," an unidentified Iranian diplomat told Swiss ambassador Livia Leu Agosti, the report said.

Concern

The main Shi'ite opposition alliance says it wants a constitutional monarchy, but more radical Shi'ite groups have said they are protesting to topple the Sunni dynasty that has ruled Bahrain for more than 200 years.

Bahraini charge d'affaires Jafar Ahmad Ali Hubail was told of Iran's "serious concern" over the situation in the Gulf state.

"The action of foreign forces, no matter what their motives or form, is unacceptable and will only further complicate the situation in Bahrain," an unidentified Iranian diplomat told Hubail, the website said.

Protests erupted in Shi'ite-majority Bahrain on February 14 and several people have died in consequent crackdowns.

Complication

Earlier, foreign ministry spokesperson Ramin Mehmanparast said the military intervention will only complicate the already volatile situation in Bahrain.

"The presence of foreign forces cannot be acceptable and will make the situation more complicated and difficult," he said at his weekly news conference.

"Basically, we do not think it is right for forces of other countries, specially Persian Gulf countries, to be present or intervene in Bahrain's situation," he said.

"The people of Bahrain have demands, which are legitimate and are being expressed peacefully. Any violence in response to these legitimate demands should be stopped."

Parliament speaker Ali Larijani, who usually takes a tougher stance on foreign policy than the government, said Gulf states were acting under "American orders" and that the "roaring wrath" of the people awaited them, the official IRNA news agency reported.

Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi telephoned his Turkish and Qatari counterparts, as well as the Arab League secretary general, to discuss the situation in Bahrain, Mehr news agency reported.

"The intervention of foreign forces could lead to a regional crisis that would have serious consequences," it quoted Salehi as saying.

"It is necessary to respond to the demands of the population with common sense and perspective and without the intervention of foreign forces."

Demanding reform

Salehi on Monday asked the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) to "use all means to prevent the use of violence" in Bahrain, IRNA said.

Protesters on Monday blocked access roads to the Financial Harbour business complex in Bahrain's capital Manama, a day after more than 200 people were wounded in clashes between riot police and demonstrators.

Many of the country's disenfranchised Shi'ites see the banking district as a symbol of corruption, wealth and privilege, and opposition protesters are demanding far-reaching democratic reform.

The king has offered dialogue and a new, empowered parliament and other reforms but the opposition has refused to sit down to talks until the government resigns.

Face To Face Shoting in bahrain- alwefaqtube

Graphic amateur video: Protesters injured in Bahrain as troops open fire

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Bahrain showdown divides Iraqis on sectarian lines

Reuters - A regional showdown over Bahrain is exacerbating the split between Iraqi Shiites and Sunnis, who see the machinations of their neighbors through the lens of the sectarian divide that led to years of war in Iraq.

Iraqs own majority Shiites have adopted the cause of Bahrains majority Shiite demonstrators, who are protesting against the rule of a Sunni royal family that called in troops from Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia. The UAE is also sending police.

Iraqi Sunnis, for their part, worry about the prospect of interference by their nemesis, non-Arab Shiite Iran.

For now, it is the Shiite community that has been galvanized. An Iraqi Shiite TV station has been running a banner across the top of the screen reading "Save Bahrain." Its reports describe the arrival of Saudi troops as an "occupation."

Moqtada al-Sadr, the outspoken Shiite cleric who long fought against the U.S. presence in Iraq, said an intervention that opposed the will of the Bahraini majority was "unjust."

"The popular revolution of Bahrain is rightful, and repressing it is absolutely unacceptable," he said in a statement read to Reuters by a spokesman. "We ask God to give the people of Bahrain patience in the ordeal they are suffering and for this to be the beginning of their victory."

Khalid al-Asadi, a Shiite lawmaker from Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Malikis ruling State of Law bloc, said intervention by Saudi Arabia and other Sunni neighbors on behalf of Bahrains rulers would only worsen sectarian strife.

"I think if the king wants the situation to move to normal in Bahrain, he has to ask these (Saudi) troops to leave. They could provoke tension and worry -- and sectarian tension as well -- in this beloved country," he said.

"Of course we dont want such a thing to happen to our brothers in Bahrain, but the Saudi and UAE intervention in Bahrain worries us."

"IRANS FINGERS"

Sunnis are concerned about what they see as the spreading influence of Iran, which has denounced the Saudi deployment in Bahrain as unacceptable.

"If we look at the critical situation in Bahrain, we would be too naive if we ignored the Iranian fingers. Having a Gulf country ruled by a Shiite majority would make Iran more proud than having the atomic bomb," said Ahmed Younis, a Sunni lawyer.

Iraq, like Bahrain, has a Shiite majority whose members complained for decades of being repressed by a ruling class of Sunni Muslims who dominate the rest of the Arab world.

When U.S. forces toppled Sunni dictator Saddam Hussein and replaced him with a largely Shiite government, militias from the two sects waged war that mainly targeted civilians, killing tens of thousands and driving millions from their homes.

Iraqs Sunnis blamed neighboring Shiite Iran for arming Shiite militia, while Shiites said nearby Arab states were aiding Sunni extremists to keep the majority from taking power.

Today, Iraqis blame the actors they say fomented their own war for taking sides in Bahrain.

Support for Bahrains Shiites resonates with ordinary Iraqi Shiites, who see it as a matter of winning democratic rights.

"One family runs a country for ages? Who would accept that? The Shiite majority should have their say in Bahrain," said Zainab Abdul-Kareem, a private bank worker taking time off to pick her daughter up from school. "Its a legitimate right and whoever ignores it, he must be either deaf or crazy."

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Op dinsdag 15 maart 2011 22:29 schreef ChristianLebaneseFront het volgende:
De VS moet SA gewoon steunen. Weg met die Ayatollahs.

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Op dinsdag 15 maart 2011 23:36 schreef ChristianLebaneseFront het volgende:
Wat ideeën van de grootste oppositiepartij in Bahrein, die nu dus demonsteren:

a ban on the hanging of underwear on clothes lines

a ban on the display of lingerie mannequin

the right to legislate on issues relating to women and families is solely that of religious leaders.

more strict clothing guidelines at the University of Bahrain and other issues that it considers are against the teachings of Islam

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Two killed in Bahrain violence despite martial law

At least two people have been killed and as many as 200 injured in clashes between anti-government demonstrators and security forces in Bahrain.

A doctor told the BBC he was treating many people with head and gunshot wounds, and that soldiers and police were using ambulances to attack people.

The violence came as the government announced a state of emergency and called in Saudi troops to keep order.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has appealed for calm and restraint.

"The use of force and violence from any source will only worsen the situation," she told reporters during a visit to the Egyptian capital, Cairo.

"Our advice to all sides is that they must take steps now to negotiation towards a political resolution," she added.

Mrs Clinton also said she had told Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal that "they, along with everyone else, need to be promoting the dialogue".

A diplomatic row has also flared over the issue, with Bahrain recalling its ambassador in Tehran and complaining of "blatant interference" in its affair because Iran had condemned the arrival of foreign forces.

'Occupation'

Earlier, Bahrain's King Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa decreed that there would be a three-month state of emergency to help restore order.

The head of the armed forces had been authorised to take all measures to "protect the safety of the country and its citizens", the announcement said.

On Monday, more than 1,000 troops from the Gulf Co-operation Council rolled into the country at the king's request, flashing victory signs.

Thousands of Bahrainis marched on the Saudi embassy in the capital, Manama, on Tuesday to protest against the intervention.

"People are angry. We want this occupation to end. We don't want anybody to help the Al Khalifa or us," a protester called Salman told the Reuters news agency, referring to the Sunni Muslim ruling family.

After the declaration of the state of emergency, many protesters set up barricades to protect themselves against the security forces. Young men, some wearing masks and carrying sticks, stood guard.

Later, there were violent clashes in several mainly Shia areas. In the village of Sitra, 15km (10 miles) south of Manama, police officers armed with shotguns fired on residents, a witness told the BBC.

Medics said more than 200 people had been injured in the clashes, and that two men - one Bahraini and the other Bangladeshi - had been killed.

State television said a Bahraini policeman was among the dead, denying media reports that a Saudi soldier had been shot and killed.

Bullet wounds

There were chaotic scenes at the Salmaniya medical centre, where many of the injured were brought.

A doctor at the medical centre's accident and emergency department said there were "many, many casualties".

"People are coming in with bullet wounds and injuries caused by rubber bullets. There are hundreds of people," he told the BBC. "We received one major case - a man whose skull had been split open by something."

Two other men were in a serious condition after being shot in the eyes, while a third had been shot in the back of the head, the doctor said.

"We were at the health centre in Sitra, and they shot at us. The doctors and nurses were all scared because the windows were being broken and we could hear the shooting. This is a disaster," he added.

He said police and soldiers - both Bahraini and foreign - had seized six ambulances, and then used them to attack protesters.

"The paramedics were kicked out, and they took the ambulances. They went everywhere in them and they were shooting people."

Other doctors appealed for international help to ensure access to the wounded. The BBC saw an ambulance that had been shot at.

The main Shia Muslim opposition group, al-Wefaq, condemned the state of emergency, and appealed for international help.

On Monday, it said the arrival of Gulf states troops - the first time that any Arab government has called for outside military help during the current wave of protests sweeping the region - was tantamount to a declaration of war.

Most members of Bahrain's majority Shia community majority community, which has long complained of discrimination and repression by the Sunni elite, say they want a constitutional monarchy and other democratic reforms. However, some have said they want a republic.

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Iraq Shiite authority condemns Bahrain crackdown

AFP - BAGHDAD A leading Iraq-based Shiite Muslim authority on Wednesday condemned a deadly government crackdown on mainly Shiite protesters in Bahrain, saying the violence must stop immediately.

"We condemn this irresponsible act," Basheer al-Najafi, one of the world's four top Shiite authorities, said in a statement.

"We call on those responsible to immediately halt this injustice to citizens," Najafi said from his base in the Shrine city of Najaf in central Iraq.

Hundreds of Bahraini riot police early Wednesday launched an assault in Manama's Pearl Square, where protesters inspired by uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt have been camping for weeks demanding political reforms.

Bahrain's mainly Shiite opposition said at least two protesters were killed and dozens wounded in the violent assault.

The raid followed clashes in the kingdom between demonstrators and security forces in various Bahraini villages on Tuesday in which two people died and hundreds were hurt.

Najafi urged Bahrain's leadership to "avoid violence and sectarian strife, save lives, and take the wise path of negotiation as the best way to save the country."

Wednesday's clashes in Manama came a day after the Sunni King Hamad, boosted by the arrival in the Shiite-majority state of armed forces from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, declared a three-month state of emergency in a bid to quell the protests.

"We were surprised that the Bahraini government asked for forces from neighbouring countries, who targeted villages and people who had raised slogans of peace, and were targetted by gunfire and mortars," Najafi's statement said.

In Bahrain, five of the kingdom's top Shiite clerics had warned on Tuesday that a "horrible massacre is expected at Pearl Square against the people of this (Shiite) sect, only for peacefully demanding their rights."

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Op woensdag 16 maart 2011 11:37 schreef ChristianLebaneseFront het volgende:
@ stuk van yavanna

Zegt eigenlijk genoeg dat die mensen zichzelf zien als shia ipv bahraini. Religieus extremistische opstand gewoon

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Op woensdag 16 maart 2011 07:38 schreef yavanna het volgende:
Ook wel een intressant stuk om door te lezen en de reactie's.

[..]

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Iraqs Sadr calls for protest against Bahrain deaths

(Reuters) - Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr called for mass demonstrations in Baghdad and Basra on Wednesday in support of mainly-Shiite demonstrators in Bahrain.

The crackdown by Bahrains Saudi-backed Sunni royal family against demonstrators from the countrys Shiite majority has galvanized Iraqs own Shiite community, exacerbating the sectarian tension that led to years of war in Iraq.

"Moqtada al-Sadr is calling for demonstrations today in Baghdad and Basra to support the Bahraini people and to denounce and condemn the murdering of innocent revolutionaries," senior Sadr aide Hazem al-Araji told Reuters.

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Op woensdag 16 maart 2011 12:17 schreef johnnylove het volgende:
@Charismatisch

Weet niet in welke wereld je leeft, maar die Tiran zal nooit weggaan daar. En indien hij weggaat zal zijn plaats meteen worden ingenomen door een gazel van SA.

De strategische ligging van het eilandje is van te groot belang om in handen te laten komen van de sjiieten.

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Op woensdag 16 maart 2011 13:48 schreef johnnylove het volgende:

Aan het eind zullen de Iraniers verliezen, doordat de rest van de wereld niet meer gegarandeerd is van de vrije stroom van olie.

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Waarom denk je dat VS zicht afzijdig houdt in Libie? Als ze nu dat doen, hebben ze een probleem op de langere termijn met hun Islamitische "bondgenoten"

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En ik denk ook dat je macht van Iran een beetje overdrijft.

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Fellow Shiites rally behind Bahrain protesters

(Agence France-Presse) - From Iran to Saudi Arabia and through the Iraqi city of Najaf, Shiites in the Middle East rallied Wednesday behind Shiite protesters in Bahrain against a violent crackdown by the ruling Sunni dynasty.

In Shiite-majority Iraq, a leading authority of the sect called for an immediate halt to the deadly crackdown in Bahrain.

"We condemn this irresponsible act," Basheer al-Najafi, one of Iraqs four top Shiite authorities, said in a statement from his base in the Shrine city of Najaf in central Iraq.

Early Wednesday, hundreds of Bahraini riot police backed by tanks and helicopters fired shotguns and tear gas at demonstrators in Manamas Pearl Square, clearing the symbolic heart of the uprising in the strategic Gulf kingdom.

Bahrains mainly Shiite opposition said at least three protesters were killed and dozens wounded in the violent assault.

"We were surprised that the Bahraini government asked for forces from neighbouring countries, who targetted villages and people who had raised slogans of peace, and were targetted by gunfire and mortars," Najafi said.

Armed forces from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates rolled into Bahrain on Monday at the invitation of the Sunni monarchy to help Manama deal with Shiite-led protesters.

The assault on protesters prompted radical Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr to call for protests in Baghdad and the southern city of Basra Wednesday and nationwide demonstrations Friday, "in support of the people of Bahrain," his office said.

Only hours after the call, some 2,000 Sadr supporters staged a demonstration in central Basra, carrying Iraqi flags, portraits of Sadr and banners condemning the bloodshed in Bahrain.

"Stop shedding the blood of Bahrainis and Arabs," read one banner. "We demand a stop to Arab and foreign intervention in Bahrain," proclaimed another.

Sadr al-Deen al-Qubbanchi, another Shiite cleric in Najaf, said that the protests in Bahrain were not simply a Shiite uprising but a "popular movement," and condemned the military intervention there.

"It is an intervention to protect a weak political regime, instead of helping the people," he said.

Iran, which sees itself as the beacon of Islam and champion of the worlds Shiite Muslims, condemned the "mobilisation against the population in Bahrain," calling it "heinous, unjustifiable and incomprehensible."

"How can those who use weapons against their people want to govern them?" Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said, quoted by the state news agency.

Iran has been especially rattled by the military intervention in Bahrain by troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

"This expedition is a very foul and doomed experience and regional nations will hold the American government responsible for this," IRNA quoted Ahmadinejad as saying.

In Kuwait, where Shiites make up around 30 percent of the 1.15 million citizens, Shiite MPs strongly slammed the Gulf Cooperation Council for sending troops to crush the protests.

Shiite MP Saleh Ashur warned he would question the prime minister in parliament if Kuwaiti troops also were dispatched to help the Manama rulers.

Sunni MPs, however, praised the move and called on the Kuwaiti government to rush forces.

On Wednesday, about a dozen Shiite women gathered outside the Bahraini embassy in Kuwait City in protest at the crackdown.

Lebanons Shiite militant group Hezbollah, meanwhile, said the military intervention in Bahrain would hamper peaceful solutions.

"Military intervention and the use of force against a peaceful popular movement will not lead to a solution and will complicate matters while hampering chances of finding a solution," the party said in a statement late Tuesday.

Hezbollah said it was concerned about attacks against protesters and questioned Washingtons role in the latest developments.

In Saudi Arabia, a few hundred Shiite protesters on Tuesday took to the streets near Qateef in the oil-rich Eastern Province in solidarity with Bahraini Shiites, an activist told AFP.

Shiites make up around 10 percent of the 18 million native Saudis and are concentrated in the eastern province bordering Bahrain.

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Germany condemns occupation forces in Bahrain

(Monsters and Critics.com) German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle on Wednesday condemned the presence of foreign military forces in Bahrain, two days after troops from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) were sent to the country.

'We call upon the countries in the region to show restraint. The escalation of violence must end,' he said, calling for a national dialogue between government and opposition forces.

'A solution must be found within the country itself,' Westerwelle added.

German's Foreign Ministry recommended that the 250 German nationals living in Bahrain leave the country, and a ministry spokesman said that imposing a state of emergency was not conducive to finding a solution.

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Op woensdag 16 maart 2011 22:35 schreef ChristianLebaneseFront het volgende:

[..]

Nee hoor. Ik gun de Khalifa familie alles.

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UN rights chief slams military takeover of Bahrain hospitals

UN rights chief Navi Pillay on Thursday slammed security forces' takeover of Bahrain hospitals and medical facilities as "a blatant violation of international law."

The top UN human rights official urged Bahrain on Thursday to rein in its security forces, citing allegations that they had killed, beaten and carried out arbitrary arrests of protesters, and attacked medical workers.

Pillay said in a statement she was "deeply alarmed by the escalation of violence by security forces in Bahrain, in particular the reported takeover of hospitals and medical centres" in the country, which she called a "shocking and a blatant violation of international law."

"There are reports of arbitrary arrests, killings, beatings of protesters and of medical personnel, and of the takeover of hospitals and medical centres by various security forces," Pillay, a former UN war crimes judge, said in a statement. "This is shocking and illegal conduct."

Rights activists have deplored a bloody crackdown mounted by Sunni rulers against Shiite-led protests, accusing security forces of preventing the injured from reaching hospitals and of beating medics trying to collect the wounded from the streets.

Manama's main hospital was sealed off by police armed with shotguns, and

Bahrain's Health Minister Nizar Baharna, a Shiite, announced his resignation after police allegedly burst into a Manama hospital.

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Top Shia cleric slams Bahrain violence

Top Shia cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani has called on Bahraini authorities to end a violent crackdown on anti-government protesters in the kingdom.

Expressing grave concerns about Manama's harsh measures against unarmed civilians over the past few days, the highly influential Ayatollah Sistani emphasized Wednesday on the necessity to resolve problems in the Shia-majority country through peaceful means, his spokesman Hamad al-Khaffaf, told AFP.

The statement came after hundreds of Bahraini riot police and Saudi forces, backed by tanks and helicopters, attacked demonstrators in Manama's Pearl Square, the epicenter of anti-government protests, where demonstrators have camped out for weeks, killing at least six people and injuring more than 1,000 others.

The city's main hospital, where the injured were being treated, was also attacked by Saudi forces and everyone inside the building, including doctors and nurses, were taken hostage.

Shias around the world have condemned the brutal crackdown by the ruling Sunni dynasty.

Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, and Qatar have dispatched their armed forces to crisis-hit Bahrain to assist the rulers in Manama with their brutal crackdown on nationwide protests against the Sunni-led monarchy's persistent suppression of the majority Shia population.

Foreign military intervention in Bahrain has also concerned UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who has called for a meaningful and broad-based national dialogue.

The UN chief also urged Bahrain's regional neighbors and the international community to support a dialogue process and an environment conducive to credible reform in Bahrain.

Bahraini demonstrators maintain that they will hold their ground until their demands for freedom, constitutional monarchy and a voice in the government are met.

Meanwhile, hundreds of people in Iran, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Iraq and Kuwait have staged demonstrations in support of protesters in Bahrain.

HM/PKH/MB

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Shiites in Iraq's holy city of Karbala rally against Saudi-led Sunni troops sent to Bahrain

By The Associated Press (CP) 1 hour ago

BAGHDAD A local Iraqi official says thousands of Shiites are rallying in the holy city of Karbala against troops sent from Sunni Arab states to Bahrain to help the tiny island's Sunni monarchy deal with Shiite-led opposition protesters.

Karbala provincial councilman Hussein Shadhan al-Aboudi says about 3,000 people gathered Thursday on the clearing between the city's two Shiite holy shrines. He says larger demonstrations in Baghdad and Shiite-dominated cities in Iraq's south are planned for after Friday prayers.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has said he fears that anti-riot Saudi and United Arab Emirates forces deployed in Bahrain will inflame sectarian violence in the Mideast.

Two prominent Iraqi Shiite clerics have criticized Bahrain's crackdown against protesters.

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Op donderdag 17 maart 2011 12:33 schreef ChristianLebaneseFront het volgende:
Goed om te zien dat de Golfstaten elkaar te hulp schieten bij het stoppen van extremisten.

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Kuwait will not send forces to Bahrain

29 mins ago

(Reuters) - Kuwait will not send forces to Bahrain to help put down anti-government demonstrations but may try to mediate, an Arabic newspaper reported on Thursday.
On Monday, Bahrain asked for support under a Gulf defence pact after weeks of protests by pro-democracy activists, mainly majority Shi'ites who complain of discrimination in the country led by a Sunni monarchy. I will leave today (Wednesday) to Bahrain to hand over a
letter from His Highness the Emir to his brother King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa, the daily al-Jarida quoted Foreign Affairs Minister Sheikh Mohammad al-Sabah as saying.
The newspaper said Kuwait would not send forces and is looking into playing a mediating role, but it did not name its sources.
Some 1,000 Saudi soldiers and 500 UAE police officers entered Bahrain, which hosts the U.S. Fifth Fleet, this week.
On Wednesday Bahraini forces used tanks and helicopters to drive protesters off the streets and clear a camp that had become a symbol of their demand for more democratic rights.
The crackdown prompted sympathy protests from Shi'ites across the region. Kuwait has a large Shi'ite minority which could object to Kuwait sending troops.

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Amnesty International heeft donderdag een kort rapport gepubliceerd over de wreedheden die de veiligheidstroepen van het kleine Golfstaatje Bahrein begingen tijdens de bloedige onderdrukking van de protesten in de hoofstad Manamah in februari 2011. Ze maakten daarbij systematisch gebruik van buitensporig geweld om demonstranten neer te slaan.

De internationale mensenrechtenbeweging Amnesty International roept de Bahreinse overheid op om het geweld onmiddellijk te stoppen en de verantwoordelijken voor het buitensporige politie-optreden gepast te vervolgen. Straffeloosheid kan niet, vindt Amnesty.

Het nieuwste AI-rapport 'Bloodied but Unbowed: Unwarranted State Violence against Bahraini protesters' beschrijft hoe veiligheidstroepen in februari zonder waarschuwing met scherp schoten op demonstranten en extreem geweld gebruikten. Ze belemmerden het medisch personeel die de gewonden probeerden te helpen en vielen ze zelfs aan.

Het rapport is het resultaat van een onderzoeksmissie die een team van Amnesty International in Bahrein uitvoerde tussen 20 tot 26 februari 2011. Het team sprak er met slachtoffers, getuigen van het geweld, medisch personeel, lokale mensenrechtenactivisten en de overheid.

De lancering van het rapport gaat gepaard met een nieuwe escalatie van geweld in het kleine koninkrijk aan de Perzische Golf. Troepen van Saoedi-Arabië en de Verenigde Arabische Emiraten (VAE) arriveerden begin deze week in het land en de koning kondigde de noodtoestand af.

Opnieuw toevlucht tot buitensporig geweld
"Het is verontrustend te zien hoe de Bahreinse autoriteiten opnieuw hun toevlucht nemen tot dezelfde tactieken om demonstranten aan te pakken als in februari, zelfs op en nog intensievere manier", zegt Amnesty International.

"De overheid moet de veiligheidstroepen onmiddellijk in bedwang houden en het recht op vrije meningsuiting respecteren en garanderen. Het doden van vreedzame demonstranten en ander geweld tegen demonstranten en medisch personeel mag niet onbestraft blijven. De misdaden van de veiligheidstroepen moeten grondig en onafhankelijk onderzocht worden. De daders en opdrachtgevers moeten worden gestraft."

Dokter Hani Mowafi, delegatielid van Amnestys onderzoeksmissie in februari, stelde telkens dezelfde ernstige en soms fatale verwondingen vast. Deze tonen aan dat de veiligheidsdiensten van op korte afstand met scherp op de demonstranten schoten en het daarbij vaak gemunt hadden op het hoofd, de borst en de buik van de betogers.

Amnesty International kon restanten van wapens en munitie identificeren die werden gevonden op het Parelplein na de aanval op 17 februari. De organisatie verzamelde onder meer traangasbussen en kogelhulzen van rubberkogels van Amerikaanse makelij en Franse traangasgranaten en cluster-rubbergranaten die in 18 stukken uit elkaar spatten.

Verschillende landen en regios keurden exportlicenties goed voor wapenleveringen aan Bahrein, ook Belgische wapens werden naar Bahrein uitgevoerd. De Vlaamse en Waalse gewestregeringen leverden uitvoerlicenties af.

Amnesty vraagt daarom met aandrang om alle export op te schorten van wapens, munitie en daaraan gerelateerd materieel aan de oproerpolitie en veiligheidsdiensten van Bahrein.

Als reactie op het extreme geweld van de veiligheidstroepen heeft het Verenigd Koninkrijk enkele licenties voor wapenhandel aan Bahrein ingetrokken. De Franse overheid schortte alle export van veiligheidsmaterieel aan Bahrein op.

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Op donderdag 17 maart 2011 13:59 schreef Drifter__ het volgende:

[..]

lol
CFL redenering: Sjiet = Iran = extremist.....

اطلاق رصاص حي �ي البحرين

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Op vrijdag 18 maart 2011 19:55 schreef ChristianLebaneseFront het volgende:
Zo'n welvarend land binnekort naar de klote door die extremisten

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Op zaterdag 19 maart 2011 13:38 schreef nikk het volgende:

[..]

De grap is wanneer de betogers winnen het alleen maar zal verslechteren. Toch mooi, demonstreren voor het recht om te zorgen voor minder rechten. Allah Akhbar.

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Op zaterdag 19 maart 2011 14:32 schreef nikk het volgende:

[..]

De vrijheid om anderen hun vrijheid te ontnemen. En alsof de meerderheid per definitie gelijk heeft. Sowieso is het maar de vraag of er sprake is van een meerderheid.

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Op zaterdag 19 maart 2011 14:58 schreef nikk het volgende:

[..]

Ik ben intolerant voor intolerantie. Net als ik tegen vrijheid ben voor groepen die de vrijheid willen beknotten.