Bahrain blocks three websites 'for breaking the law'

Manama: A day after it announced the establishment of a ministerial watchdog committee to crackdown on electronic and print media instigating sectarianism, Bahrain has blocked three websites.

"The sites have broken the law by exacerbating tension and the decision to shut them down is in line with the new directives to address promptly and decisively any attempt to undermine national unity and compromise Bahrain's social fabric," Hamad Al Mannai, information undersecretary, said.

"We have applied the law accurately and without discrimination," he said, alluding to the probability the websites were not all Sunni or all Shiite. He, however, did not name the sites.

The government on Sunday announced it was setting up a panel to monitor the electronic and print media and mosques for possible material or speeches that could fuel sectarianism.

The panel is headed by the interior ministry and includes representatives from the justice and Islamic ministry and the information ministry.

The decision was made following an unprecedented edgy week of bitter public altercations between Sunni and Shiite religious leaders and MPs and in which newspapers and websites assumed a major role.