This post is part of our special coverage Bahrain Protests 2011 [1].
This Tuesday 14 February, 2012, Bahrainis practiced their daily habit of protesting but this time with larger numbers trying to reach the former epicentre of demonstrations in 2011 – Pearl (Lulu) Roundabout [2] in the capital Manama.
February 14 marked the one year anniversary of their revolution, which has been severely repressed by the regime backed by the troops of the Gulf Cooperation Council's Peninsula Shield Force [3].
Since the revolutionary protests started [1], tens of people have been killed either by bullets, tear gas suffocation, torture, or by police cars running them over. Many opposition figures, medics, athletes, students, netizens, journalists and unknown protesters are still in jail or facing trial. Yet, oppression has not succeeded in holding the protests back.
[4]The virtual flower that IFEX designed in a supporting campaign for Bahrain's revolution
Hacking for Bahrain
The day of the anniversary started off with the online group ‘Anonymous’ taking down the websites of a United States tear gas manufacturing company, pro-government newspaper Al-Ayaam, and the Bahrain government.
Anonymous published a statement [5] about what they called #OperationBahrain [6] – part of their #HackVDay [7]:
So you war profiteering all crazy, selling mad chemical weapons to militaries and cop shops around the world, thinking you will get away unscathed by the rising tides of insurrection? Think again, assholes. Combined Systems, lay down your arms: you just lost the game. In the past we have marched on your offices in Jamestown, Pennsylvania: now it is time to march on your websites. All your “less than lethal” arms were simply no match for our 9000 cocks and mad black hat technique. We came, we saw, we rooted and rm'd your website. Umad?
Marching and tear gas
Pictures of protesters attempting to reach Pearl Roundabout were published through Twitter. The roundabout, where major protests took place in 2011, was demolished by the regime to erase the memory of the revolution; the site was enclosed by wires before Tuesday to prevent any gatherings.
These were some of the early pictures of the protests:
[8]Attempting to reach Pearl Roundabout. Photo posted by Twitter user @A7med_BH
[9]@Moawen: Bahrain government attacked a school in Sitra with tear gases
[10]@Moawen: Youth continue their peaceful march to Lulu
One of the notable pictures of the day was posted by Twitter user @Moawen [11] from Sanabis:
[12]
Bahraini activist in exile, Maryam Al-Khawaja, kept carrying out updates online:
@MARYAMALKHAWAJA [13]: Two young men, Mohammed AlHaiki and Mohammed Jaffar, who walked to pearl square carrying only a #bahrain flag were arrested.
News of tear gas and police presence came from different parts of the country:
@drFatimaHj [14]: Shooting is continuous now #BaniJamra sound grenades and tear gas although there is no crowd to disperse!!
Mohammed Ashoor tweeted updates from different parts of Bahrian. He posted:
@mohdashoor [15]: Sanabis village has been under heavy attack since early morning & many arrests, house raids & teargas showers reported!!
Twitter user Ashoor (@mohdashoor) posted this picture from Daih Village:
[16]Image by Twitter user @mohdashoor
Other pictures were tweeted of tear gas filling several villages. This one is from Sanabis:
[17]Image by Twitter user @Fatima_xc
This video (uploaded to YouTube by KhabbazoOo [18] [ar]) shows a house burning because of security bombs, according to the description:
Stopping political naturalization [19] has been one of the main demands by protestors in Bahrain. This tweet came in relevance:
@JShahryar [20]: Bahraini just asked me on Twitter how to say “Don't Shoot!” in Urdu so the Pakistani/Indian cops won't shoot them
Countless arrests
As usual, the police did not hesitate in blocking or arresting protesters. One Twitter user posted:
@ba7rainiDXB [21]: An blonde expat was just roughed up by the police next Gufool traffic light !! He was walking towards lulu.
Others wrote:
@BHRS2001 [22]: Nine women arrested this morning from Sanabis village, being kept at AlHoora Police Station
@BHRS2001 [23]: Isa Ibrahim has broken both his legs after being run over and is in AlQal'aa hospital
@iFattema [24]: Teargas enters to the house. we can't do anything. anything..they still shooting in an exaggerated manner.
This is a picture of protesters laying down before getting arrested:
[25]@Lulu_Geek: Hidden for safety
Detaining activists
Nabeel Rajab [26], a well-known human rights activist who moderates the Bahrain Human Rights Center and the Gulf Human Rights Center, has been calling on people to show up and use the revolution's first anniversary to let the regime know that the struggle is not stopping and that the people still demand democracy, freedom and justice, as he said in this video:
The role Rajab has played in leading the uprising in past months has irritated the regime; he was beaten [27] up last month and as he was marching this Tuesday, he was detained for several hours alongside some American activists who came to monitor the situation.
[28]Activist Nabeel Rajab marching towards Pearl Roundabout. Image by Twitter user @WLEXT
Reuters correspondent Andrew Hammond posted this picture of Nabeel Rajab saying the activist was sitting after what appeared to be an illegal stroll, with riot cop guarding:
[29]Image by Twitter user @Hammonda1
‘Witness Bahrain’ is a team of Americans who went to document violations during the revolution's first anniversary. Six of them were arrested and will be deported according to their website statement [30]. One of them is activist Radhika Sainath who has talked to Los Angles Times [31]describing the details of her arrest.
Zainab Al-Khawaja was arrested two days before the anniversary for the second time [32]in few months. She is a prominent blogger and the daughter of opposition leader Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja who is hunger striking as he serves a life sentence in jail. This tweet came in remembrance:
@Freealkhawaja [33]: As @angryarabiya spends her 3rd day in prison 4 attempting 2 return 2 Pearl Square, #Bahrain govt renews violence against protesters
News of slow Internet and disrupted television channels has also circulated through social media sites. One of the BBC's shows tweeted in this regard:
@BBC_WHYS [34]: British expat says #BBC World Service has been shut down in Bahrain.
This post is part of our special coverage Bahrain Protests 2011 [1].