5th/ 6th January 2015

BAHRAIN MEDIA ROUNDUP

Bahraini opposition
leader's arrest
extended another 15
days
The detention of Bahraini
Shiite opposition leader,
Sheikh Ali Salman, has
been extended another 15
days.

As is common in Bahrain,
prosecutors did not mention
Salman by name, but
referred to his case on their
official Twitter account
Monday.
Salman, who is secretary
general of the main
opposition group al-Wefaq,
has been under arrest since
Dec. 28. He is being held at
a police station outside the
capital Manama.
Read More

Bahrain opposition
head to remain 15
days in custody
Bahrain's Shiite opposition
chief Sheikh Ali Salman,
whose arrest has sparked
protests and clashes with
security forces, was
remanded in custody on
Monday for two more
weeks, the prosecution
said.

It said his detention was

extended pending an
investigation into charges
including seeking to change
the regime by force.
The December 28 arrest of
Salman, who heads the
influential Al-Wefaq bloc,
has prompted calls by the
United States and Shiitedominated Iran for his
release as well as clashes
between police and
protesters in the Sunniruled kingdom.
Read More

Supporters of
Bahraini opposition
leader are angered by
his extended
detention
Supporters of a detained
Bahraini opposition leader
have once again clashed
with police after it was
announced that he would
be held for a further 15
days.

Police fired rubber bullets

and tear gas to break up
around 100 protesters who
had gathered outside his
home near the Bahraini
capital.
SheikhAliSalman,head of
the al-Wefaq Islamic
Society, was arrested on
December 28 after leading
a protestrally against
elections in November
which his party boycotted.
Read More

Lawyer says Bahrain

Shiite leader formally
charged
The defense lawyer of one
of Bahrain's most prominent
Shiite opposition leaders
says prosecutors formally
have charged Sheikh Ali
Salman with four charges
that carry sentences
ranging from three years to
life in prison.
Abdulla al-Shamlawi told
The Associated Press that
Salman was charged late

Bahrain extends
detention of
opposition leader statement
The head of the Bahrain's
main Shi'ite Muslim
opposition group was
remanded in custody for a
further 15 days on Monday
in a move that could further
inflame sectarian tensions
in the Kingdom.
Sheikh Ali Salman, head of
the al-Wefaq Islamic
Society, was arrested on
Dec. 28 after leading a
protest rally against

Sunday by the Bahrain's

Public Prosecution with
inciting a change of
government by force,
inciting hatred of a segment
of society, inciting others to
break the law and insulting
the Interior Ministry.
The charges allegedly refer
to speeches Salman made
between 2012 and now.
The country's Shiite
majority has led protests
demanding political reform
from the Sunni-led
monarchy since February
2011.
Read More
elections in November
which his party boycotted.
Washington, a close ally of
Bahrain which bases its
Fifth Fleet there, has
already expressed deep
concern over his detention.
Late on Sunday, Salman's
lawyer, Abdulla al-Shamlawi
told Reuters he had been
formally charged by the
public prosecutor with
inciting a change of
government by force,
inciting hatred of a segment
of society, inciting others to
break the law and publicly
insulting the Interior
Ministry.
Read More

On Sunday, the
Bahraini Prosecution
Office refused to
release the
opposition leader on
bail.
The detention ofBahraini
opposition leader Sheikh Ali
Salman has been extended
15 days, Bahraini Public
Prosecution Office said
Monday.

Bahrain leader to
stay 15 more days in
custody
An opposition leader in
Bahrain will be kept in
custody for 15 more days
pending investigation into
charges of law violation, the
prosecution announced
Monday.
Ali Salman, secretary
general of the Shiite Al
Wefaq National Islamic

"Secretary General ofa

Political Society shall be
detained for15 more days
pending investigation,"
Bahrain Public Prosecution
wrote onits official Twitter
page, referring toSheikh Ali
Salman, the leader
ofopposition party AlWefaq.
On Sunday, the Bahraini
Prosecution Office refused
torelease the opposition
leader onbail.
Read More

Society, was detained Dec

28 after leading a protest
rally against the November
general elections which his
party had boycotted, Xinhua
reported.
He was charged with
promoting political change
using illegal means,
explicitly inciting hatred
against specific segments
of society, inciting others to
break the law and
deliberately insulting the
interior ministry.
Read More
after he was remanded in
custody for a further 15
days.

Police, protesters
clash in Bahrain over
opposition leader's
detention
Bahraini police fired rubber
bullets and tear gas to
scatter protesters who
gathered outside the home
of a Shi'ite Muslim
opposition leader on
Monday, witnesses said,

Riot police attempt to

defuse clashes in
Bahrain

Around 100 protesters

angry at the decision had
assembled outside his
house in the Manama
suburb of Bilad al-Qadeem
calling for his immediate
release, according to a
Reuters eyewitness, and
clashes with police ensued.
Read More

Anti-government protesters
and supporters of detained
opposition leader Sheikh Ali
Salman clashed with riot
police in a suburb of the
Bahraini capital.(Reuters)
Watch Here

Bahrain prosecutors
charge prominent
Shiite Leader
The defense lawyer for
prominent Shiite leader
Sheikh Ali Salman said
Sunday that his client is
facing four charges from
Bahrain prosecutors
carrying sentences that
range from three years to
life in prison. Salman's
lawyerreported [AP report]
that the charges include

Bahrains opposition
leader to remain in
custody
The Public Prosecution
reviewed recordings of his
sermons and speeches and
he was questioned in the
presence of his four
lawyers.
Manama: Bahrains Public
Prosecution announced on
Monday that opposition
leader and General
Secretary of Al Wefaq
National Islamic Society, Ali

Protesters injured in
Bahrain clashes:
witnesses
Several people were
injured on Tuesday when
demonstrators clashed with
Bahraini security forces in
the capital Manama during
protests over the detention
of a prominent opposition
leader, eyewitnesses said.

inciting a change of
government by force,
inciting hatred of a segment
of society, inciting others to
break the law and insulting
the Interior Ministry. Salman
is currently secretary
general of the opposition
group known as the AlWefaq party[GU Berkley
Center backgrounder],
which has been recently
ordered by Bahrain's
Ministry of Justice [official
website, in Arabic] to
suspend [JURIST report] all
activities.
Read More
Salman, will remain in
custody for 15 additional
days pending
investigations.
He was summoned by the
CID on December 28, when
the Public Prosecution
charged him with promoting
political change using illegal
forceful means, explicitly
inciting hatred against
specific segments of the
society, incitement to noncompliance with the law
and deliberate defamation
of a statutory body (Interior
Ministry).
Read More

Western-allied Bahrain has

been dogged by political
tensions since security
forces quelled 'Arab Spring'
protests in 2011. Bahrain's
majority Shi'ite Muslims
have demanded reforms
and a bigger share in
government in the Sunniruled kingdom, where the
U.S. Fifth Fleet is based.
Read More

Protests continue in
Bahrain over
extended detention of
opposition leader
Protests continued in
Bahrain on Monday in
response to the continued
detention of opposition
leader Sheikh Ali Salman.

Salman was arrested Dec.

28 after leading an antigovernment rally with
thousands of other Shia
Muslims from the al-Wefaq
movement.
"The regime in Bahrain has
decided to renew the
detention of al-Wefaq's
secretary general, Sheikh
Ali Salman, for another 15
days," al-Wefaq announced
on its website Monday.
Read More

Bahrain opposition
stages rallies in
Manama
Bahraini opposition activists
protested in different parts
of capital Manama on
Monday against a decision
by the country's prosecution
authorities to prolong the
detention of prominent
opposition figure Ali
Salman.
Salman, secretary-general
of the Shiite Al-Wefaq

Clashes erupted between

police and demonstrators.

Clashes continue in
Bahrain over
detained opposition
leader
The have been more antigovernment protests
inBahrainin support of the
detained opposition leader
Sheikh Ali Salman.

Salman who is head of the

al Wefaq Islamic Society
was arrested last Sunday
after leading aprotestrally
against November elections
which his party boycotted.
His detention has been
described by his supporters
as a political move.
Read More

Comment: Arms
sales trump human
rights as UK enters
Bahrain
The decision to open the
first British base "east of the
Suez" since 1971 follows
a'landmark' military
agreement which the
foreign secretary, Philip
Hammond MP, signed with
the Bahraini regime earlier
this month. The new base
will serve as a strategic UK
outpost in the Middle East
with the government's

contribution believed to be
around 15 million.
Nicholas Houghton, the
chief of the defence staff
has described the move as
'symbolic' and a recognition
of the 'quality of the
relationship' between the
two nations. It may bear
fruit for political leaders, but
it's a relationship that
people in Bahrain are
opposed to, with large scale
protests against the base
and against UK
ambassador Iain Lindsay.
Read More

More Clashes In
Bahrain Over
Opposition Leader
Detention
Clashes between protesters
and police in Bahrain
continue, after the
opposition leaderSheikh Ali
Salman had his detention
extended by two weeks.
The police fired tear gas
and rubber bullets at
protesters who gathered
outside the home of the

OPINION: Doubling
Down on Dictatorship
in the Middle East
In the tiny kingdom of
Bahrain, meanwhile, the
demonstrations for
constitutional reform that
began in February 2011
continue, despite the
governments attempts
to silence the opposition
with everything at its
disposal from bird shot
to life imprisonment.
Throughout it all,
Washington has treated
Bahrain like a respectable
ally.

Islamic Society, has been in

detention since late last
month pending investigation
of charges that he had
incited violence and called
for the use of force to effect
regime change.
Al-Wefaq, for its part, has
accused police of using
"brutal force" to suppress
demonstrations, publishing
photos on its website of
demonstrations held in
different parts of the capital.
Read More

detained Shiite Muslim

leaders home, calling for
his immediate release.
A small island nation, the
ruling Sunni family in
Bahrain is considered
aconstitutional monarchy,
with long running tensions
between Sunni and Shia
Muslims sometimes spilling
into civil unrest. Bahrain
declared independence
from the UK in the 70s and
has forged major ties with
the USA.
Read More
Back in 2011, for instance,
just days after Bahraini
security forces fired live
ammunition at protesters in
Manama an attack that
killed four and wounded
many others President
Barack Obama praised
King Hamad bin Isa Al
Khalifas
commitment to reform.
Neither did the White
House object when it was
notified in advance that
1,200 troops from Saudi
Arabia would enter Bahrain
to clear the protests in
March 2011.
Read More

Cynicism Trumps
Fears For Human
Rights
On Monday I tabled a
motion to Parliament
saying: That this house is
appalled at recent human
rights abuses in Bahrain,
most notably the multiple
charges that have recently
been brought against the
Bahrainian opposition alWefaq leader Sheikh Ali
Salman
Its quite extraordinary the
levels of non-comment by
Britain and other UN

security council members

over this arrest. It comes
on the back of decades of
oppression of legitimate
opposition in Bahrain,
routine abuse of those in
prison, and, tragically, many
deaths, as Bahraini forces
have sought to control
opposition demonstrations.
The relationship between
Britain and Bahrain seems
to be overwhelmingly driven
by arms sales,
appeasement of Saudi
Arabia and the desire to
maintain a British military
presence in the kingdom.
Read More

Humam Hamoudi,
conveyed the letter.

Manama denies Iraq

protest reports
Bahrain has denied reports
that its ambassador to Iraq
has received a letter of
protest from the highest
religious figures in Iraq.
The reports claimed that the
First Deputy Speaker of the
Iraqi parliament, Shaikh

Bahrains Ambassador to
Iraq, Salah Ali Al Maliki, has
said that he had not
received any memorandum
or letter of protest via
anyone, stressing that
protest notes are issued by
the foreign ministry of the
host country, and not by any
other entity.
Read More