Thousands Protest against Bahraini Gov’t

Local Editor

Thousands of people have taken to the streets in Bahrain to demonstrate against the government.

The demonstrators marched west of Bahrain's capital, Manama, on Friday to protest new strict new laws designed to curb dissent.

Opposition parties called for the protest and it had prior approval from the government - meaning it wasn't broken up like others recently called by demonstrators in the Sunni-ruled kingdom.

The protesters also called for the release of political prisoners.
"Our homeland cannot remain a hostage to a small group that controls power and wealth," al-Wefaq said in a statement on Thursday, adding, "It is the right of the Bahraini people, including all its groups, to have a peaceful rotation of power."

The fresh demonstration comes despite the ongoing crackdown on anti-regime protests.

On August 14, regime forces fired tear gas and bird shots to disperse anti-regime demonstrations in several towns near the capital.
In July, Bahrain passed a law banning all protests in Manama.

Bahrainis have been staging demonstrations since mid-February 2011, demanding political reforms and a constitutional monarchy, a demand that later changed to an outright call for the ouster of the ruling al- Khalifa family following its brutal crackdown on popular protests.
Scores of civilians were also martyred, many of them under torture while in custody, and thousands more detained since the popular uprising in Bahrain began.

Meanwhile, protesters vowed to continue holding anti-regime demonstrations until their demand for the establishment of a democratically-elected government and an end to rights violations are met.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team