Buscador avanzado

On avait assisté au mois de mars à de violents affrontements à Bahreïn et à une vague de répression menée par les troupes saoudiennes arrivées au pays suite à des manifestations pacifiques demandant l'instauration d'une monarchie constitutionnelle. L'Iran n'a pas tardé à durcir le ton et à appeler l'Arabie saoudite à retirer ses troupes et à arrêter son ingérence à Bahreïn. Le pays qui est comme l'Iran, majoritairement chiite est par ailleurs gouverné par une minorité sunnite, a toujours bénéficié du soutien de l'Iran dans les circonstances de crise. On a souvent parlé de conflit irano-saoudien sur un territoire bahreïni.

Pour l'Arabie saoudite, tout changement politique à Bahreïn profiterait à l'Iran qui pourrait voir son rôle se renforcer davantage dans la région.…  Seguir leyendo »

The world watches with alternating hope and alarm as diverse countries in the Middle East and North Africa explore new relationships between governments and the governed. This struggle is of intense interest to international observers, given the key role some of these countries play in global energy and financial markets and in the political currents in Muslim countries.

In Bahrain - long recognized as a safe harbor of peaceful, moderate, progressive policies - we have witnessed demonstrations in our streets as some of our citizens demand a new social compact. Our crown prince has agreed to negotiate this, but it is attainable only if we respect the rule of law and maintain peace and security.…  Seguir leyendo »

Avec l'envoi de plus de 1 000 hommes à Bahreïn et la répression brutale qui s'en est suivie, l'Arabie saoudite vient de signifier que l'épicentre de la révolution arabe s'est déplacé du Maghreb au Machrek, de Tunis à Manama. Nul doute que le soulèvement des Tunisiens et des Egyptiens demeurera, aux yeux de l'histoire, l'événement fondateur de ce que d'aucuns appellent la "renaissance arabe". Malgré tout, la contestation qui secoue le petit royaume de Bahreïn (à peine 600 000 habitants, hors expatriés) revêt une tout autre importance. Ce petit Etat occupe une place particulièrement importante qu'il doit à sa position géopolitique, à sa composition sociologique et, accessoirement, à sa structure confessionnelle.…  Seguir leyendo »

Describing a pro-government demonstration in Bahrain last week, Michael Slackman wrote in the New York Times that it was an affluent crowd, very different from the mostly low-income Shia who were protesting against the government. "The air was scented with perfume, and people drove expensive cars," he said.

While local and international media talk repeatedly about Bahrain's sectarian divide, demonstrators on both sides insist there is Shia-Sunni unity. So what, exactly, is going on?

First, some facts. The majority of Bahrainis – about 70% – are Shia, and the majority of pro-reform/anti-government demonstrators at the Pearl Roundabout are Shia. It is true, also, that Bahrain is ruled by a Sunni royal family, and that the majority of participants at pro-government rallies appear to be Sunnis.…  Seguir leyendo »

Quand on se penche sur les manifestations antigouvernementales qui ont éclaté dans le petit royaume de Bahreïn, la question n'est pas de savoir pourquoi ces événements se produisent, mais pourquoi ils ont mis autant de temps avant de survenir. Durant ces six derniers mois, les tensions se sont dangereusement exacerbées dans le pays. Mais elles sont nées il ya plusieurs années déjà. La dynastie sunnite régnante Al-Khalifa a opprimé l'opposition et élaboré un plan provocateur qui vise à rétablir l'équilibre démographique en réduisant la proportion majoritaire actuelle de 70% de chiites. Et ce, tout en ignorant le souhait raisonnable des groupes d'opposition qui lui demandent d'octroyer plus de pouvoir au parlement élu.…  Seguir leyendo »

The fervor for change that inspired revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt is now rocking Bahrain. But the uprising in Manama differs from the mass protests that turned out longtime rulers in North Africa. Indeed, sectarian fault lines, together with the security forces’ complete fealty to the monarchy, seriously diminish the likelihood of peaceful regime change.

Whereas Tunisia and Egypt are relatively homogeneous countries – Sunni Muslims constitute more than 90% of their inhabitants – Bahrain’s Sunnis, including the royal family and the country’s political and economic elite, comprise only about one-third of the population. The rest are Shia. Each of these groups is making different, if not contradictory, demands.…  Seguir leyendo »

On Wednesday evening, some Bahraini friends of mine decided to go to the Pearl Roundabout in the center of the capital to clean up antigovernment graffiti sprayed by youngsters there. It wasn’t that they disagreed with the protesters; indeed, they supported the calls for reform. But they felt that removing the spray paint was a way to help ensure that demands for change were taken seriously and that protesters weren’t dismissed as just a bunch of vandals.

I was curious about the camp that had been established on the Pearl Roundabout the day before, so I decided to go along. As a Briton who has lived here on and off for 10 years, I have always felt welcomed and part of Bahraini society.…  Seguir leyendo »

Where’s the next place to blow in the Arab revolution? Candidates are many, but there’s one whose geopolitical impact vastly exceeds its diminutive size — the island of Bahrain.

This is a place run by an oppressive and corrupt little regime, long coddled by Washington because the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet is headquartered there. The future of the base is far from secure if the regime falls.

A few hard facts about the island that should give pause for thought:

First, Bahrain is a Shiite island. You won’t see it described that way, but it is — 70 percent of the population, more than the percentage of Shiites in Iraq.…  Seguir leyendo »