Schoolgirls Targeted in Bahrain Raids
In first of five exclusive reports, Al Jazeera has unearthed evidence that sheds light on kingdom's brutal crackdown.

Al Jazeera is learning more about the full extent of the brutal crackdown in Bahrain against those it believes took part in recent anti-government protests.

The kingdom's oil company has fired almost 300 employees.

And according to an opposition group, police have raided up to 15 mainly girls schools, detaining, beating and threatening to rape girls as young as 12.

Al Jazeera's Charles Stratford reports.

Syrian President Sends Tanks into Major City
REUTERS: President Bashar al-Assad has sent tanks deep into Syria's third city Homs, escalating a military campaign to crush a seven-week-old uprising against his autocratic rule.

Syrians demanding political freedom and an end to corruption have held weeks of what they say are peaceful demonstrations in the face of government repression, despite a civilian death toll that has reached 800, according to the Syrian human rights organization Sawasiah.

On Sunday, Homs residents told Reuters they heard machinegun fire and shelling as troops made their first incursion into residential areas of the city of one million people, 165 km (100 miles) north of Damascus.

At least one person, a 12-year-old child, was killed when tanks and troops charged into the Bab Sebaa, Bab Amro and Tal al-Sour districts of Homs overnight, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. » | Khaled Yacoub Oweis | AMMAN | Sunday, May 08, 2011

Thousands protest in Syria
May 7, 2011 – Anti-government demonstraions continue in Syria, rights activists say 21 people were killed on Friday. Julie Noce, Reports

Inside Story - The GCC's Rôle in Regional Conflicts
A Gulf mediation plan to resolve the Yemeni crisis raises concerns about the GCC's role in regional conflicts. Has the GCC lost credibility and could its regional role backfire?

Bahrain Puts Opposition Leaders and Activists On Trial
REUTERS: Bahrain put 21 mostly Shi'ite activists, including a prominent hardline dissident, on trial on Sunday, charged with trying to topple the government during weeks of protests in February and March.

Bahrain, a Sunni-ruled island kingdom, cracked down on the protests demanding greater political freedoms, a constitutional monarchy and an end to sectarian discrimination.

The crackdown, in which neighboring Sunni-led Gulf states sent troops to back Bahrain's forces, has boosted regional tension with Iran, which Bahrain accuses of manipulating its Shi'ite co-religionists to expand its influence.

Those on trial on Sunday face a hybrid civilian-military court where military prosecutors try the case before a panel of one military and two civilian judges.

Those on trial include Shi'ite dissident Hassan Mushaimaa, leader of the opposition group Haq who has called for the overthrow of the Sunni al-Khalifa monarchy, and Ebrahim Shareef, the Sunni leader of the secular Waad group that has called for a constitutional monarchy but has not joined those seeking to oust the king.

Bahrain's state news agency said the defendants were accused of involvement in an "attempt to overthrow the government by force and in liaison with a terrorist organization working for a foreign country."


Rights groups said the defendants should be tried before civil courts, saying the military courts did not allow the accused to defend themselves properly. » | MANAMA | Sunday, May 08, 2011

More Bloodshed in Syria
In Syria, three women taking part in a pro-democracy march are reported to have been shot dead by Syrian forces near the city of Baniyas.



The coastal city has become a flashpoint for anti-government protests in the country.



Witnesses say tanks rolled in before dawn - and residents tried to stop them by forming human shields. The action comes just hours after thousands of people in cities and towns across the country turned out to protest.



Al Jazeera's Zeina Khodr has this report from Beirut.



Severe reporting restrictions in Syria mean Al Jazeera cannot verify the content of the amateur footage included in this report.

Syrian Tanks Enter 'Protest Hub' Baniyas
Syrian troops have pressed into the coastal town of Baniyas, rolling in before dawn, according to witnesses.

It follows more nationwide protests on Friday that saw at least 30 people killed.

Al Jazeera's Bernard Smith reports.

Crackdown reins in Bahrain activists
The once massive pro-democracy protests in Bahrain has been reduced to small clashes between youth and police in predominantly Shia areas.



Security forces have allegedly launched a brutal crackdown on protesters with beatings and sweeping arrests. Nearly 1000 demonstrators have been imprisoned, among them doctors, artists and lawyers. 



The UN High Commissioner for Human rights Navi Pillay says severe torture is being used against prisoners, and he is calling on the Bahraini government to stop intimidating and harassing human rights defenders and political activists. 



May Welsh reports. [May 6, 2011]

'Imperialism behind Bahrain Crackdown'
PRESS TV: Bahrain intensifies its crackdown on popular protests against the rule of Al Khalifa royal family in the Persian Gulf country, drawing criticism from the international community.

Amnesty International appealed to Manama to stop the arrests of opposition members. EU Foreign Policy chief Catherine Ashton has also expressed deep concern over the imminent executions of four anti-government protesters in Bahrain. (+ video) » | MN/MRS | Thursday, May 05, 2011

Relatives Fearful Over Bahrian Trials
In Bahrain, human-rights workers say at least 50 medical staff are still missing after a crackdown on hospital care for injured anti-government demonstrators.

There are fears that some of the detained staff could face stiff sentences for treating protesters. Among them is Dr al-Dallal, a prominent physician arrested on March 17 during a military raid at Salmaniyah Hospital in Manama.

His wife, Fareeda al-Dallal, was also arrested and beaten under custody last Tuesday. Al Jazeera spoke to her about her arrest and the fears she has about the safety of her husband.

Syrian Refugees Flee into Turkey

Inside Story: Syria's Military Assault
On Monday the Syrian army advanced into the southern city of Deraa. In a statement the government said troops had been deployed on the request of citizens who were worried about "armed extremists".



Inside Story presenter Dareen Abughaida discusses with guests: Najib Ghadbian, a professor of Political Science at the University of Arkinsas; Hassan Nafaa, a professor of Political Science at Cairo University; and Ian Black, Middle East editor of The Guardian newspaper. 



This episode of Inside Story aired on Tuesday, April 26, 2011.

Secret Police Detain More Than 500 as Syria Defies Western Threats
THE INDEPENDENT: Brutal security forces move in as government refuses to be cowed by warning of international sanctions

Syria's feared secret police raided hundreds of homes yesterday as authorities stepped up attempts to crush the pro-reform movement amid tentative signs of coordinated action by world leaders against the regime.

Forces were reportedly massing outside the north-western city of Baniyas last night amid fears that the government was planning an assault on a second rebellious city, where two weeks ago soldiers tried to quell protests against President Bashar al-Assad.

Thousands of army troops and tanks stormed the southern city of Deraa on Monday, killing at least 20 people in what appeared to be pre-emptive action against opposition to Assad rather than a response to demonstrations.

People braved sniper fire yesterday to pull the bullet-riddled bodies of the dead from the streets. More than 400 people have died during the uprising against the 11-year rule of Assad. » | Khalid Ali in Damascus and Rupert Cornwell in Washington | Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Robert Fisk: If the Rumours and Conspiracies Are True, then President Assad's Regime Is on the Road to Civil War
THE INDEPENDENT: If the dead soldiers are victims of revenge killings, it means the opposition is prepared to use force

Every night, Syrian state television is a horror show. Naked corpses with multiple bullet wounds, backs of heads sliced off. All Syrian soldiers, the television insists, murdered by "the treacherous armed criminal gangs" near Deraa.

One of the bodies – of a young officer in his twenties – has had his eyes gouged out. "Knives and sharp tools" appear to have been used on the soldiers, the commentary tells us. There seems no doubt that the bodies are real and little doubt that they are indeed members of the Syrian "security" forces – the word security needs to be placed in inverted commas these days – nor that the weeping, distraught parents in the background are indeed their families. » | Robert Fisk | Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Syria: William Hague Condemns Crackdown
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: William Hague has condemned the bloody crackdown on protests in Syria and call [sic] for an end to violent repression.


Mr Hague confirmed that Britain is working with partners in the United Nations Security Council, the European Union and the Middle East region to send a "strong signal" to Bashar Assad, the Syrian president, that he must halt violence against civilians.

The UK has joined France, Germany and Portugal in drawing up a draft statement on Syria which is being circulated at the UN, according to Government sources.

The move comes amid growing concern over the brutal tactics being employed by the Syrian regime to quell unrest and silence calls for President Assad to go.

At least 11 people were killed yesterday in an escalation of the crackdown on the city of Daraa, where the uprising began last month.

In a statement issued by the Foreign Office in London today, Mr Hague said: "I condemn utterly any violence and killings perpetrated by the Syrian security forces against civilians who are expressing their views in peaceful protests. This violent repression must stop." » | Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Syria Uprising: Snipers Fire from Rooftops on Funeral March
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: At least five people have been killed in Syrian funeral processions, a day after 80 protesters died in the country's bloodiest day of the uprising so far.


Snipers opened fire from rooftops as a funeral procession made its way to a cemetery, killing at least three mourners and wounding one in the Damascus suburb of Douma.

Tens of thousands of mourners marched in the procession, setting off from a mosque in the northern suburb to the cemetery.

Clerics in Damascus were heard using mosque loudspeakers to appeal on doctors to help anyone wounded in the attack.

Two other mourners were killed in southern Syria as they joined funeral cortèges headed for the town of Izra to bury scores of people killed on Friday by security forces, a human rights activist said.

"The security forces opened fire with live rounds at people who were heading from the Deraa region toward Izra to take part in the funerals," the activist said from the southern city of Deraa.

He identified them as Yasser Nseirat and Jamal Qanbar, while adding that several other people were wounded. » | Saturday, April23, 2011

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Syria uprising: 'We will continue until the fall of the regime' – As President Assad follows the 'Bloody Good Friday' massacre with the shooting of funeral mourners, defiant Syrians vow to keep protesting. » | Richard Spencer, Middle East Correspondent | Saturday, April 23, 2011

Listening Post - Bahrain: Below the Radar
On this week's show: Bahrain - a small kingdom cracking down on the media in a big way. Plus, a look at state media in post-revolution Egypt

Bahrain Accused of Systematic Attacks on Doctors
THE GUARDIAN: Medical workers targeted because they have evidence of security force atrocities, claims US-based human rights group

Bahraini authorities have conducted a systematic campaign of attacks and arrests against medical workers who treated injured protesters during months of unrest in the Gulf kingdom, according to a US-based medical group.

Physicians for Human Rights claims doctors and nurses have been targeted because they have "evidence of atrocities committed by the authorities, security forces and riot police" in the crackdown on Shia dissent in the Sunni-ruled island nation, which has been placed under martial law.

The report by the group is the second to accuse Bahrain's authorities of abuses in the medical system. Earlier this month, the international humanitarian organisation Doctors Without Borders called Bahrain's hospitals "places to be feared" and claimed officials were arresting protesters who sought treatment. » | Associated Press | Friday, April 22, 2011

Syrian Protesters Fired Upon
With the government severely restricting press freedoms, getting images and footage of protests in Syria has been difficult. 



Al Jazeera obtained this dramatic footage from one of Friday's demonstrations - this one in Harasta, where security forces appeared to open fire on protesters, just as they had done in several other cities and towns in a crackdown that claimed at least 75 lives.



Al Jazeera's Imran Khan reports.

Syria's Deadliest Day
Rights groups say nearly 90 protesters were killed on Friday, when Syria's security forces opened fire on crowds in several cities, killing at least two children

Syria Cracks Down on Protests

Bahrain Security Forces 'Tortured Patients'
THE INDEPENDENT: Bahrain’s security forces stole ambulances and posed as medics to round up injured protesters during a ferocious crackdown on unarmed demonstrators calling for reform of the monarchy, an investigation by a rights group reveals today.

The first major report on repression of the medical profession during the country’s crisis details how a doctor was abducted during an operation and injured patients lying in hospital were tortured and threatened with rape.

The investigation by Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) followed a report by The Independent yesterday detailing threats faced by medical staff who treated victims of the repression. More than 30 medics have been taken away by security forces and have had little or no contact with their families.

The report said it found that security forces targeted Shia doctors in particular. The crackdown has created such a climate of fear that wounded people were too frightened to go to hospital to seek treatment. » | Patrick Cockburn | Friday, April 22, 2011