Bahrainis Continue Protests, Forces Detain 6 Twitter Users

Local Editor

Bahrainis poured into streets in eastern of the tiny gulf Kingdom to protest against the ruling al-Khalifa regime.

The demonstration was held in the island of Sitra east of capital Manama on Wednesday with Bahrainis shouting slogans against the two regimes.
Protesters burned effigies of Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.

This comes as Bahraini authorities detained six people for allegedly defaming the country's ruler on Twitter, according to the country's public prosecutor's office.
The six, who were not identified, join a growing list of anti-government activists caught up in an Internet crackdown by authorities in the Gulf nation.
The prosecutor further claimed that the six have been detained over the past couple of days.

According to the statement, the detainees will be charged with misusing Twitter and defaming Bahrain's king.

The latest detentions come two days after a court acquitted rights activist Yousef al-Muhafedha of spreading false news on Twitter.

Many rights activists in Bahrain are serving time, some even life terms, for expressing their anti-regime views on social media or in street protests.
Meanwhile, Arab interior ministers warned of the spread of extremism through social media networks at a security meeting in Riyadh Wednesday.

"Extremist thought... on social networks has resulted in a major increase in terrorist acts, political assassinations and sectarian conflicts," Mohammed Kuman, head of the council of Arab interior ministers said in an opening speech.
Bahraini forces killed over 100 protesters and injured many more over the past two years.
Bahrain has so far refused to compromise on opposition demands for democratic reform, while Saudi Arabia has mulled a potential union with Bahrain to safeguard it from democratization.

The royal family, which has maintained a tight grip over Bahrain for more than a century, is a strategic US ally and hosts the US Fifth Fleet.

Source: News agencies, Edited by moqawama.org