9th/ 10th February 2013

BAHRAIN MEDIA ROUNDUP

times a week -- were held behind closed doors, an AFP correspondent said.

Bahrain political rivals launch fresh round of talks

Bahrain's key political players launched a new round of talks on Sunday to try to resolve the kingdom's two-year crisis, after opposition groups made a last-minute decision to join a national dialogue. Participants gathered at a tourist resort south of Manama, where the rst session of the dialogue -which will convene three

The meeting gathered 27 government representatives, including three ministers, eight members of the opposition, and members of progovernment Sunni political groups. The opposition said it would take part in the next session on Wednesday but that its continued participation was not guaranteed. Read More frustration at opposition parties abrupt termination of previous discussions and claimed that no sooner had the dialogue been announced, it was being undermined by opposition activists and sympathisers. Sheikh Ali Salman, leader of the main opposition group, al-Wefaq, told The Independent that his scepticism stemmed from the fact that members of the ruling family refused directly to enter the talks, and that no rm commitment had been made about how its outcomes would be treated. Read More

TALKS TO END BAHRAIN CRISIS BEGIN AMID MISTRUST

After nearly two years of nonstop unrest, opposing factions in Bahrain began talks on Sunday to ease an Arab Spring conict that has run longer than Syria's rebellion and is playing out on the doorstep of the U.S. military's main naval base in the Persian Gulf.

But mistrust runs so deep on all sides that even the prelude to the negotiations has been a study in the kingdom's divisions and suspicions, and suggests a difcult route toward any possible accords. The country's Sunni rulers supported by the West and other Gulf allies - seek to bring the main Shiite factions back into the political fold in hopes of starting a gradual reconciliation on the strategic island, home to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet. Read More the Sunni-led government and its supporters on Sunday, but it will reserve judgment about whether to continue with these talks until after the meeting. The last national dialogue, which took place in July 2011 in the aftermath of a brutal crackdown on prodemocracy demonstrations, saw the opposition walk out saying it was vastly underrepresented. Read More uprising that shook the Gulf kingdom, the national dialogue is aimed at ending political deadlock. The country's Sunni rulers supported by the West and other Gulf allies are seeking to bring the main Shiite factions back into the political fold in the hope of starting a gradual reconciliation. Read More

Talks on Bahrain crisis begin despite unease on both sides

The long-anticipated national dialogue process to nd a political solution to the two-year-old crisis in Bahrain was due to begin today despite declarations of mistrust on both sides. Opposition parties had agreed to the talks despite expressing their doubts about the governments commitment to reform, while the regime of King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa on Friday highlighted its

Bahrain opposition agrees to attend talks

Bahrains opposition coalition has agreed to start talks with the government just days ahead of the twoyear anniversary of Arab spring-inspired unrest that rocked the Gulf state. The opposition, led by the majority Shia, says it plans to attend the rst talks with

Bahrain Unrest: Crisis Talks Set To Begin

Opposing factions in Bahrain are set to begin talks in a bid to ease unrest and mistrust in part of an Arab Spring conict that has gone on for nearly two years. Ahead of the second anniversary of the Shiite-led

agreed to take part, as did several other opposition parties.

Isa Al Khalifa. However, mistrust runs deep on all sides.

Bahrain holds talks to end political deadlock

Bahrain's government and opposition groups have held the rst round of talks aimed at solving the country's two-year-old political crisis. The talks on Sunday, the rst in Bahrain in more than 18 months, involved dozens of representatives from the country's main political groups. Al-Wefaq, the largest opposition group,

Isa AbdulRahman, the ofcial spokesperson for the National Dialogue, told Al Jazeera that the rst day of the talks brought "consensus between all the participants to have two sessions per week - they will be meeting on Sundays and Wednesday to continue the talks". He said the focus now rested on "building the bridges of trust" between all parties. Read More

Bahrain seeks dialogue after two years of Arab Spring

Bahrains government and opposition will attempt to negotiate an end to the political crisis that began with intense protests in 2011. Sunday's session marks nearly two years since the February 14 prodemocracy protests. Six of the main opposition groups agreed in January to take part in the dialogue called by King Hamad bin

Bahraini ofcials call the dialogue a chance for a "national consensus," but are unclear on whether they will consider any reforms that would weaken their direct control over the country. The conict began during the successful 2011 revolutions in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya and has now lasted longer than Syria's own, much bloodier rebellion. Read More demonstrators drawn mainly from Bahrain's Shia majority have continued small protests on an almost daily basis demanding the Sunni ruling family call elections and create a constitutional monarchy. While opposition members have expressed very cautious optimism that the talks represent a meaningful step forward, they have also voiced concerns that the agenda remains unclear. Read More The opposition will attend Sundays session to discuss the nine points on which they had sought clarications from the government, leading opposition member Hasan Aali told reporters after a meeting at Al-Wefaq headquarters. Based on the response the opposition receives on their queries, they will decide whether or not to continue the dialogue. Read More

Bahrain opens national dialogue with opposition groups

Bahrain opened a new round of dialogue between opposition and pro-regime groups on Sunday, aimed at solving the two-year-old political crisis. The talks are the rst in the country for 18 months and will include members of the

loargest opposition group, Al Wefaq, as well as several smaller parties, Al Jazeera reported. The government will not be directly represented, instead loyalist fronts, such as the National Unity Gathering, will promote the governments positions. Negotiations stalled in July 2011, when most opposition groups boycotted the talks. Read More anniversary of the protests at the Pearl roundabout in Manama on February 14, 2011. Read More

Talks on Bahrain crisis begin

Home to the US Fifth Fleet, the tiny state has been hit by unrest since mass prodemocracy protests in early 2011, becoming a front line in a region-wide tussle for inuence between Shia Muslim Iran and Sunni Arab states such as Saudi Arabia. The mass disturbances were crushed but

Bahrain set to resume talks on consensus

Bahrain's justice minister is set to open political talks to "promote vital national interests" today amid the prospect of further unrest this week in the run-up to the second anniversary of Arab Spring-inspired protests in the kingdom. The resumption of the National Consensus Dialogue being hosted by Shaikh Khalid bin Ali Al Khalifa comes ahead of the

Bahrain opposition to join political talks

Bahrains opposition said yesterday that it would join the opening session of talks aimed at resolving a political crisis that began with Arab Spring-inspired protests nearly two years ago. Read More

Bahrain opposition joins national dialogue

Bahrains Shiite opposition groups, including the major Al-Wefaq bloc, have agreed to attend the rst session of the national dialogue set to begin later Sunday, they announced following a meeting.

Bahrain dialogue on amid hopes to end conflict

A much-anticipated national dialogue was lunched on Sunday afternoon amid expectations that it would help heal a deep political wound that has aficted Bahrain for months. Read More

High expectations ahead of Bahrain dialogue

Representatives from the two chambers of the bicameral parliament, 15 societies across the political spectrum and the government are expected to hold on Sunday a national dialogue that will aim to take Bahrain out of a months-long political deadlock. Read More

Rule of Silence: Is there freedom of speech in Bahrain?

Skepticism and mistrust appears prevalent in Bahrain, with talks between the opposition and the government set to resume on Sunday, aimed at

breaking the political deadlock. Activists blame the authorities for gagging the voices of protest, while ofcials insist they've made more than enough concessions. RT's Alexey Yaroshevsky reports on freedom of speech, or lack of, in Bahrain. Watch here