Group: Bahrain detains 6 top opposition activists

MANAMA, Bahrain – Authorities detained at least six prominent opposition activists Thursday as the crackdown on dissent widened under martial law-style rule in the tiny Gulf nation, a rights group and relatives of the arrested said.

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Bahrain king clamps down; 3 dead as unrest spreads

MANAMA, Bahrain – Bahrain's king declared a three-month state of emergency Tuesday to quell a Shiite uprising, as clashes spread through the capital and surrounding villages in a showdown that drew in the region's major powers and splintered along its main sectarian faultlines. At least two Bahrainis and a Saudi soldier died, and hundreds of protesters were injured by shotgun blasts and clubs.

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Bahrain lawmakers ask king to impose martial law

A barricade set up by Bahraini anti-government protesters Sunday, March 13, 2011, prevents traffic from entering the capital of Manama, Bahrain, with the skyscrapers of its financial district seen in the background. The demonstrators set up the barricade after riot police left the area, failing to dislodge them with rubber bullets and tear gas from their encampment at Pearl roundabout. (AP Photo/Hasan Jamali)

By REEM KHALIFA, AP

MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) — A parliament group asked Bahrain's king on Monday to impose martial law after a month of unrest that has left the tiny Gulf nation sharply divided between minority Sunni Muslims backing the ruling system and Shiites demanding sweeping changes.

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Saudi troops enter Bahrain as protests escalate

A Bahraini anti-government protester flashes victory signs at a military helicopter hovering over Manama. More than 1,000 Saudi troops have entered Bahrain where anti-regime protests have raged for a month, as demonstrators took over Manama's central business district. (AFP/James Lawler Duggan) 

By Mohammad Fadhel, AFP

MANAMA (AFP) - More than 1,000 Saudi troops have entered Bahrain where anti-regime protests have raged for a month, a Saudi official said Monday, as demonstrators took over Manama's central business district.

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Bahrain opposition seeks to ease sectarian tension

Bahraini shiites demonstrate in front of the UN headquarters in Manama. Bahrain's main opposition group called for the cancellation of a protest march on the royal palace scheduled for Friday, saying it was to avoid an escalation of sectarian tension in the kingdom. (AFP/Adam Jan) 

By AFP

MANAMA (AFP) - Bahrain's main opposition group called for the cancellation of a protest march on the royal palace scheduled for Friday, saying it was to avoid an escalation of sectarian tension in the kingdom.

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Bahrain police block march on royal palace

An anti-government protester looks out from his tent at Pearl Square in Manama, March 10, 2011. REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed 

By Frederik Richter and Lin Noueihed, Reuters

MANAMA (Reuters) - Bahraini police blocked several thousand protesters from reaching the royal palace on Friday, amid fears the march would spark fighting on a Gulf island where the majority is Shi'ite Muslim but the ruling family is Sunni.

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Gates: Arab nations must enact democratic reforms

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, left, is greeted by Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa at Sakhir Palace in Manama Saturday, March 12, 2011. Gates is meeting in Bahrain with the kingdom's top rulers, who are facing growing demands for more political freedom. (AP Photo/ Mandal Ngan, pool)

By ROBERT BURNS, AP

MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) — U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Saturday he believes leaders in Persian Gulf ally Bahrain are serious about addressing grievances that have spawned a growing protest movement, but swift action is needed to deny rival Iran the chance to exploit the current instability.

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