Bahrainis rage against Saudi ‘occupation’
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Bahraini anti-government protesters burn old furniture during clashes with riot police in the village of Daih, west of the country’s capital Manama, on March 14, 2016. ©AP
Bahrainis have held nationwide protest rallies to mark the fifth anniversary of the Saudi troop deployment to their country as part of the Al Khalifah regime’s heavy-handed crackdown on dissidents.
According to Press TV, on Monday, the protesters took to the streets in different areas, including the Wadiyan village in Sitra, Musalla and Samaheej villages in the north, the Nuwaidrat village close to Sitra as well as Dailh Village, located west of the capital Manama.
The rally in Daih saw the marchers holding up anti-Saudi banners and chanting slogans against the regimes in Riyadh and Manama.
One large poster bore a picture of Saudi Arabia’s King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud reading, “We refuse Saudi occupation to Bahrain. Your occupation is under our feet.”
The protesters also vowed to hold on to the memory of those martyred or jailed by Saudi-backed forces since 2011.
The gatherings, however, turned violent after Bahriani forces intervened to disperse the protesters, firing teargas at them in several areas. The demonstrators also responded by setting fire to furniture items and lobbing petrol bombs at police cars.
Since February 14, 2011, thousands of anti-regime protesters have held numerous demonstrations on an almost daily basis in the island kingdom, calling for the ruling Al Khalifah family to relinquish power.
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