2nd April 2013

BAHRAIN MEDIA ROUNDUP

Bahrain police break up womens protest with stun grenades
Bahrains security forces used stun grenades and teargas to disperse antigovernment demonstrators in the west coast town of Malkiya after a womens protest was banned by authorities. Protesters came out to show support political prisoners who remain in jail and to demonstrate against the upcoming Formula One race in April. For the same reasons protesters in Bahrains capital, Manama, clashed with police who used teargas and sound bombs to disperse their demonstration against the regime on Friday. Bahrain has seen an upsurge of demonstrations since 2011 inspired by the Arab Spring and led by Shiite Muslim groups demanding reforms, political freedom and equality from the countrys Western-backed Sunni rulers. Read More her bedroom on a dawn raid two years ago.

Activist hailed for standing up to regime

Teachers applauded a Bahraini union organiser in Liverpool today as she recounted a violent crackdown by their Toryfriendly government. Bahrain Teachers Association vice-president Jalila al-Salman described security forces bursting into

Ms Salman told delegates at the NUT annual conference that the union had faced "the worst campaign of defamation" since joining peaceful protests in 2011. "We all needed people's demands but did not act politically as fabricated in the media, we just fought for teachers' rights," she said. Read More Medelci said that he will convey Bahrain's message to Iran in order to ease the tension between Manama and Tehran. Shaikh AlKhalifa said that Bahrain won't oppose any such Algerian-led initiative. Relations between Bahrain and Iran have been strained against the backdrop of accusations from the government in Manama that Tehran has supported opposition groups in Bahrain for more than two years. Read More Prison to thank us for our work on Bahrainlisten to his short message here.

Bahrain: Jalila alSalman addresses NUT conference

Vice-President of the Bahraini Teachers Association, Jalila alSalman addressed the annual conference of the National Union of Teachers on 2 April. NUT national executive member Nick Grant told MENA Solidarity Network that Jalilas speech brought

delegates to their feet in a standing ovation. She told me at breakfast that she still has hearing and vision problems as well as liver and kidney complaints from the beatings she suffered before her recent release from prison. The union itself has been disbanded by the state and its President is still incarcerated. Respect to Christine Blower for getting her there by plane from NASUWT Conference in Bournemouth Read More Bin Ahmad Al Khalifa was quoted as saying when he was asked about the tension between Bahrain and Iran and the chances of Manama requesting Algiers to mediate with Tehran. All countries can however convey Bahrains position to Iran so that the facts on the ground are obvious, he said. Read More

Algeria declares its readiness to mediate between Iran and Bahrain

Algeria's Foreign Minister, Mourad Medelci, announced on Monday that his country is willing to act as a mediator between Iran and Bahrain in the best interest of the two states. Speaking at a joint press conference with Bahrain's Foreign Minister Khaled bin Ahmad Al-Khalifa, Mr

Bahrain denies Iran mediation request

Bahrains foreign minister has denied reports that he had requested Algeria to mediate between his country and Iran. A brother does not mediate between his brother and a foreigner, Shaikh Khalid

A Message from Nabeel Rajab

abeel Rajab, President of the Bahrain Center for Human rights, is serving a two-year sentence for tweeting about protests. He has been in custody since July 2012. On Sunday March 31, he called Human Rights First from Jaw

Two years ago, President Barack Obama told the Bahraini government the only way forward is for the government and opposition to engage in a dialogue, and you cant have a real dialogue when parts of the peaceful opposition are in jail. Read More