Bahrain military chief says Gulf troops to stay on
\n(AP)<\/p>\n
12 May 2011, 4:18 PM
\nSaudi-led forces sent to Bahrain to help crush anti-government protests will remain even after emergency rule is lifted next month, the head of the kingdom\u2019s military said. Saudi-led forces sent to Bahrain to help crush anti-government protests will remain even after emergency rule is lifted next month, the head of the kingdom\u2019s military said in a move that is likely to deepen regional tensions with Iran.<\/p>\n
In response, Gulf leaders have sharply warned Iran to stay out of their affairs and accused Bahrain\u2019s protesters of having links to groups such as the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. The Bahrain military commander, Sheik Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, also threatened even harsher crackdowns if demonstrators return to the streets in the strategic US ally, which is home to the Navy\u2019s 5th Fleet.<\/p>\n
\u201cI say to those who did not get the message, \u2018If you return we will come back, stronger this time,\u2019\u201d Sheik Ahmed was quoted as saying late Wednesday by the official Bahrain News Agency. Meanwhile, the expected resumption of a trial against 21 opposition leaders and human rights activists was adjourned until May 16. The activists are accused of plotting against the state and having links to foreign factions \u2014 an apparent reference to Hezbollah.<\/p>\n
Fourteen of the suspects are in custody and the rest are being tried in absentia in a special security court set up under martial law-style rule imposed in March. Separately, the same court also convicted another opposition supporter on charges of attempted murder of a police officer and participation in a protest aimed at disrupting public order, a report by the state-run Bahrain News Agency said Thursday. It added that the protester, Hamad Yousef Kazim, was sentenced to 15 years in prison.<\/p>\n
Kazim\u2019s court-appointed lawyer can appeal the sentence, the report also said. <\/p>\n
Bahrain\u2019s king said the emergency rule will be lifted June 1. But the military chief\u2019s statements suggest a heavy security presence will remain along with the Saudi-led troops. Bahrain\u2019s Shias comprise about 70 percent of the population, but claim widespread discrimination and abuses at the hands of the 200-year-old ruling Sunni dynasty. …more<\/a><\/p>\n