Bahrainis reject prisoners’ release

Mourners chanted anti-regime slogans as the funeral procession wound through Manama streets, while vast crowds of protesters converged on Pearl Square to demand the fall of the regime despite one of their demands -- release of political prisoners -- having been met, AFP reported.

Chants of “sit-in, sit-in, until the regime falls” reverberated across Pearl Square, the epicenter of anti-regime protests since February 14 which has now been turned into a tent city.

The opposition demonstrated Tuesday afternoon in Manama, the first to be officially called for by political associations since protests started last week in response to calls by cyber activists. Tuesday's demonstration has been titled “the march of loyalty to martyrs,” said Ibrahim al-Sharif, a Sunni secularist leading opposition activist.

“We expect it to be the largest for the opposition,” he said.

The protest came a day after King Hamad bin Isaa al-Khalifa answered a crucial opposition demand by ordering the release of political prisoners and halting trial procedures against others.

The Islamic National Accord Association (INAA) which is the main Shiaformation and controls 18 seats in the 40-member parliament, had demanded along with other opposition groups, the release of prisoners before considering a call for dialogue.

It's unclear how many prisoners will be freed, said government spokeswoman Maysoon Sabkar.

But they include some of the 25 Shia activists on trial for allegedly plotting against the Sunni rulers of the strategic island kingdom, a leading member of Bahrain's Shia opposition, Abdul Jalili Khalil, told The Associated Press.

He called the prisoner release “a good step” and a “positive gesture.”

Two of those in the case are being tried in absentia, including opposition leader Hassan Meshaima, who has been in self-exile in London since last year. He was expected to return to Bahrain later Tuesday.

Mesheima's presence could bolster opposition forces seeking a harder line against the monarchy, including some who have called for the complete ouster of the king and the royal dynasty that has ruled for more than 200 years.

Meshaima's group, known as Haq, is considered more radical than the main Shia political bloc that has so far taken a central role in the revolt, which began last week with marches but quickly met with violent resistance from security forces.

Tens of thousands of opposition supporters marched Tuesday through the capital of Manama, carrying Bahrain's red-and-white flag and circling the Bahrain Mall and Manama's financial district — symbols of the country's prosperity in recent decades. Security forces did not move to confront the procession, but helicopters circled overhead.

“Egypt, Tunisia, are we any different?” they chanted.

The government said Tuesday that the overall death toll was seven from the clashes, which included the army opening fire on protesters. Previous reports from opposition groups and hospital officials in the past week set the death toll at eight, but the government tally now appears accurate.

The government said 25 people were hospitalized, but it's unclear what degree of injury authorities used to arrive at that figure. Opposition group place the figure at more that 200. Associated Press journalists at the main state hospital witnessed many dozens of people being treated.

The attacks on protesters have brought stinging denunciations from Bahrain's Western allies, including the United States. The U.S. maintains very close ties with Bahrain, which hosts the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet.

Bahrain authorities withdrew the military Saturday and allowed protesters to reclaim the landmark Pearl Square, which has been the center of the Shia-led uprising.

Photo: Some thousands of Bahraini mourners participate in a funeral march Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2011, in Malkiya, Bahrain (AP)