Protesters retake Bahrain square

Anti-government protesters back in Pearl roundabout after troops and police withdraw from protest site in capital



Source: Al Jazeera
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2011/02/201121914336940622.html

Thousands of anti-government protesters have reoccupied their former stronghold in the capital, Manama, after troops and riot police retreated from the Pearl roundabout in the centre of the city.

The cheering protesters carrying Bahraini flags, flowers and signs that said "Peaceful, peaceful" marched to the square on Saturday. They chanted, "We are victorious".

Protesters kissed the ground in joy and took pictures of about 60 police vehicles leaving the area.

Sheikh Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa, the crown prince, had earlier in the day ordered the military to withdraw, saying that the police would now be responsible for enforcing order, the Bahrain News Agency reported.

Soon after the crown prince's directive, protesters had attempted to stream back to the roundabout, but were beaten back by the police. According to the Reuters news agency, about 80 protesters were taken to a hospital after being hit by rubber bullets or teargas.

The protesters, however, were successful in the next attempt, when the riot police withdrew from the traffic circle as well.

Symbolic centre

The Pearl roundabout, the symbolic centre of the protesters' uprising, had been the scene of heavy-handed crackdown. Several demonstrators were killed and many injured as security forces cleared the area of protesters in a pre-dawn attack on Thursday morning.

It was the scene of shootings again on Friday night when troops opened fire on protesters with live rounds.

An Al Jazeera correspondent in Bahrain, who we cannot name for security reasons, said the reoccupation of the roundabout by the protesters left one to wonder what the violence during the previous days was all about. "It makes one ask what those deaths were for," he said.

The withdrawal of the troops and police from the roundabout appeared to be concessions extended by the authorities to the protesters.

'Time for dialogue'

The opposition, In rejecting a call from the crown prince for a dialogue, had earlier said the government must resign and the army should be withdrawn before any talks with the ruling family can begin.

Ibrahim Mattar, a member of the Wefaq bloc which quit parliament on Thursday, said his party did not believe there was a "serious will for dialogue because the military is in the streets".

Sheikh Hamad ibn Isa Al Khalifa, the King of Bahrain, had earlier asked the crown prince, to start a national dialogue "with all parties".

The tiny kingdom has been in upheaval with the Shia majority taking to the streets in thousands against the Sunni rulers.

Meanwhile, the General Union of Bahraini Workers has called a strike from Sunday, according to a member of the workers union at national flag carrier Gulf Air.

Also on Saturday, Catherine Ashton, the European Union's foreign policy chief, called for the dialogue process to begin "without delay". She also said that she was "deeply concerned" by reports of the use of violence by security forces, and called on all sides to show "restraint".

Speaking on state television on Friday evening, the crown prince called for calm, saying it was "time for dialogue, not fighting".

"The dialogue is always open and the reforms continue," Sheikh Hamad al-Khalifa said on Bahrain TV.

"We need to call for self-restraint from all sides, the armed forces, security men and citizens," he said. "I urge you, there should be calm. Now is time for calm."

But protesters have so far shown little appetite to heed his calls, with anger sweeping the streets following the shootings by security forces.

Barack Obama, the US president, discussed the situation with King Al Khalifa of Bahrain in a telephone calln on Friday, asking him to hold those responsible for the violence accountable.

He said in a statement that Bahrain must respect the "universal rights'" of its people and embrace "meaningful reform".

"I am deeply concerned about reports of violence in Bahrain, Libya and Yemen.

The United States condemns the use of violence by governments against peaceful protesters in those countries and wherever else it may occur," he said.

"The United States urges the governments of Bahrain, Libya and Yemen to show restraint in responding to peaceful protests and to respect the rights of their people."

On Friday, thousands observed funerals for the four people killed in a pre-dawn raid on a protest encampment at Manama's Pearl roundabout a day earlier.

Riot police had used clubs, tear gas and bird-shot guns to break up the crowd of protesters. They also tore down their tents, and blockaded the roundabout with police vehicles and barbed wire. More than 200 were wounded in that raid.

At the funerals on Friday, many chanted slogans against Bahrain's ruling Al Khalifa family. They said that while they would earlier have settled for the prime minister being sacked, they were now demanding the fall of the entire ruling government, including the royal family.

Mourners told Al Jazeera that they were both grief-stricken and angry at the heavy-handedness of the police, and that they were demanding that the international community take notice of what they call the brutality of the security forces.

As Friday prayers commenced, Sheikh Issa Qassem, a prominent Bahraini Shia Muslim religious leader, delivering his sermon in a northwestern village, described Thursday's violence as a "massacre".

Our correspondent reported that Qassem said the government was attempting to create a "sectarian divide" between Sunnis and Shias. He advocated peaceful protests, saying "violence is the way of the government", and that protesters should not espouse violent actions.

"Many of those who in the past came out [to protests] ... are afraid. They're frightened and they don't want to turn up at a protest ... because they are fearful for their lives," our correspondent said, citing an incident on February 15 in Manama, when at least one person was killed when police fired on a funeral procession.

Also on Friday, Bahraini state television showed pictures of a pro-government rally, attended by hundreds of people, taking place in Manama, despite a ban on public gatherings.