Manama: Bahraini police fired tear gas and stun grenades on Tuesday to disperse protesters trying to march to Pearl Square, the former symbol of the protest movement that started two years ago, witnesses said.
Hundreds of people marched towards the square in the capital Manama carrying Bahraini flags and chanting: “Square of martyrdom, we all still have the will”.
The February 14 Revolution Youth Coalition, a clandestine radical cyber group, had called for demonstrations marking the second anniversary of the Shiite-led uprising against the government.
During the uprising on February 14, 2011, protesters had camped for one month at Pearl Square before being forcefully driven out in mid-March 2011. Authorities later razed the square.
The attempt to march to the square came after the main Shiite opposition bloc, Al Wefaq, organised a massive protest in which thousands took part in the Shiite village of Sanabis, near Manama.
“Down with the corrupt government,” the demonstrators chanted.
The interior ministry said on Twitter that after the opposition’s rally ended, “a group of saboteurs caused riot and blocked roads, requiring authorities to take legal action against them”.
Opposition supporters have been demonstrating for more than a week ahead of the anniversary.
Bahrain has been rocked by unrest since March 2011. The unrest has so far left 80 people dead, according to the International Federation for Human Rights.
The kingdom has been in political deadlock since February 2011 and a similar round of talks failed that year.
Opposition groups, including Al Wefaq, have made a last-minute decision to join a national dialogue that began on Sunday.
