Bahrain Special: Interview with Nabeel Rajab "We Will Continue Our Uprising"

I don't believe violence is a policy of the opposition or that it is systematic. Lately we have seen some isolated cases of violence. We as human rights groups and the opposition in Bahrain disagree with violence and don't think it could be the means for change for the better. However, we understand the frustration of the people. They are being arrested, tortured and their loved ones are being killed.

The other side [the regime] is offering no solutions. Due to political considerations and economic interests, the international community is ignoring these abuses as well. That is adding to the feeling of frustration. Then we see people getting killed because of tear gas to which the international community replies with more silence. Foreigners come to Bahrain, they demolish mosques, they rob houses, they destroy property. An indigenous opposition in this country exists that is now being crushed by foreign mercenaries.

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Middle East Feature: Britain Accused of Hypocrisy Over Arms Sales (Dugan)

A "Throne" of Tear Gas CanistersThe British Government was accused of "a brazen return to business as usual"..., after licensing exports of weapons worth millions of pounds to regimes accused of repression, including Egypt and Bahrain. The permits were granted just months after ministers said they would "carefully review" licenses for countries that met protest with violence.

Arms approved for export by the UK last autumn include rifles, sniper sights, combat vehicle parts, artillery technology and gun silencers.

The revelation comes after David Cameron's visit to Saudi Arabia...was marred by questions over Britain's continued export of arms to the kingdom, which has been accused of human rights violations. Despite unrest in Saudi Arabia last year, the UK sold the regime bomb equipment, weapons sights and components for military vehicles and helicopters.

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The Latest from Iran (10 January): "A Big Atomic Bomb Will Come Out"

1945 GMT: Elections Watch. Radio Zamaneh offers an overview of the MPs who have been blocked from running in Parliamentary elections in March. It notes that nine of them --- Ali Motahari, Hamidreza Katouzian, Alireza Mahjoub, Ali Abbaspour Tehrani, Fatemeh Ajorloo, Abbasali Noura, Peymon Forouzesh, Ghodratollah Alikhani and Dariush Ghanbari --- "have all been involved in strong criticism of the administration over the past year".

The Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Mohammadreza Bahonar, said disqualifying government critics among the Principlists from running for office is “narrow-minded". However, Tehran Governor Morteza Tamaddon insisted that the disqualifications were carried out according to the law and in the “interests of the sacred Islamic Republic system".

The nominees have four days to appeal the decision, with the final decision to be made by the Guardian Council.

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Syria, Bahrain (and Beyond) LiveBlog: What Happens When the Observers Leave?

Protesters stand in front of massed ranks of police in Sitra in Bahrain today (Photo: Mazen Mahdi)

See also The Real Net Effect: Andy Carvin & the Power of Twitter
Saudi Arabia Feature: A Princess in London Calls for Reforms
Bahrain Feature: An Uprising In The NumbersBahrain 1st-Hand: Mariam Al Sarraj and the Raid on Salihiya
Tuesday's Syria, Bahrain (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Newsflash --- "The Killings Continue"

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2115 GMT: The Arabic Network for Human Rights Information updates on four activists of the 6 April Movement who were detained on Monday for sticking up posters critical of the ruling Supreme Council of the Armed Forces. One was released today, but three remain in detention and will appear before judge on Thursday morning.

2035 GMT: More photographs from Mazen Mahdi of protest and police in Sitra today:

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Saudi Arabia Feature: A Princess in London Calls for Reforms (Milmo)

Photo: Teri PengilleySat in a living room decorated with Saudi artefacts and in front of a table carrying a plate of Saudi dates ("the best in the world"), Princess Basma Bint Saud said: "The problems are because of the ruling ministers. We have ministers who are incapable of doing what has been ordered from above because there is no follow up, because there are no consequences. If you are poor man and you steal, your hand is cut off after three offences. But if you are a rich man, nobody will say anything to you."

She added: "We have 15,000 royals and around 13,000 don't enjoy the wealth of the 2,000. You have 2,000 who are multi-millionaires, who have all the power, all the wealth and no-one can even utter a word against it because they are afraid to lose what they have."

Asked if her decision to speak out means she risks losing what she has, she replied: "Oh, definitely. Definitely."

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The Latest from Iran (15 December): A Bigger Question in the Saudi Mystery

Iran Feature: The Economy --- The State of the Nation
Iran Feature: The Economy --- Assessing The Real Rate of Unemployment
Iran Feature: The Supreme Leader Is Worried --- Three Developments You Probably Don't Know
Iran Feature: The EA Story That Made It Big in Iranian Media
The Latest from Iran (14 December): Tehran Loses Another Friend?

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Iran Minister of Intelligence Heydar Moslehi & Saudi Crown Prince Nayef1541 GMT: Economy Watch. A member of Iran's Development Commission has a solution for economic difficulties: rely on the investments of Iranians living abroad.

1531 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. Yaghoub Maleki, a member of Mir Hossein Mousavi's campaign staff, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison.

1321 GMT: All-is-Well Alert. Mohammad Reza Naqdi, the head of the Basij militia, has claimed that more than 20,000 people, given the proper "guidance", have repented for the errors of their protests after the 2009 Presidential election.

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The Latest from Iran (13 December): Shoes Are Thrown at the President

2140 GMT: Parliament Watch. Speaking at Tehran University today, MP Ali Motahari, a vocal critic of the Ahmadinejad administration, has criticised the crackdown on students after the 2009 Presidential election. Considering why the repression occurred and why it continues, he said that there is an atmosphere of "fear and terror" in the Iranian Parliament because of the actions of some legislators.

2135 GMT: Sanctions Watch. The executive board of Nokia Siemens Networks has said that it will not take on any new business in Iran and will gradually reduce its existing commitments from 1 January 2012.

The Finnish company said in a letter to its staff in Iran that the decision was taken because US-led sanctions "make it almost impossible for Nokia Siemens Networks to do business with Iranian customers".

Nokia Siemens has been criticised for providing telecommunications equipment allowing the Iranian regime to maintain surveillance of protesters after the 2009 Presidential election.

2100 GMT: Economy Watch. Former Minister of Labor Hossein Kamali has claimed that more than 50% of Iran's workers now live below the poverty line.

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Iran Analysis: Will the European Union Ban Imports of Tehran's Oil? (Probably.)

Last week we noted that the European Union had not imposed a ban on imports on Iranian oil, primiarly because of the concern of southern European countries such as Greece over a cut-off of supplies; however, we noted that the EU was pursuing alternative suppliers and would likely revive the issue at its next meeting in January.

An EA source offers analysis:

It appears that an EU embargo is highly likely. EU Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger is being saying it appears consensus has been reached on the matter.

The UK Embassy takeover in Tehran seems to have been a critical turning point.

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Syria (and Beyond) LiveBlog: "Assad's Problems are Everywhere"

2033 GMT: Following the BICI report on human rights abuses in the wake of unrest in Bahrain, the Bahraini government is scheduled to shake up their law enforcement structure. And they've picked an American, with vast experience in handling difficult situations, to help out.

Bahrain's Interior Ministry says a former Miami police chief will lead training programs for the Gulf kingdom's forces as part of reforms after an independent report detailed abuses against pro-reform protesters.

The announcement Thursday says John Timoney will head a team of law enforcement advisers from the U.S. and Britain.

Good news, right? Clearly, the Bahraini police need training, leadership, and restraint, so Timoney will restore the honor of the police force. The St. Petersburg Times, back in 2003, reported on Timoney's stellar record:

Miami police Chief John Timoney must be mighty proud of the social order he maintained during the Free Trade Area of the Americas summit a couple of weeks ago in Miami - sort of the way Saddam Hussein was proud of quieting dissension in his country.

Timoney has a well-deserved reputation for using paramilitary tactics to turn any city where large protests are planned into a place where the Constitution has taken a holiday. During the FTAA meeting on Nov. 20, Timoney dispatched 2,500 police officers in full riot gear against a crowd estimated at 8,000 people, mostly union members and retirees.

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Syria, Bahrain (and Beyond) LiveBlog: Conflict Moves Towards the Centre

Two videos of the thousands in the funeral procession in Ala'ali in Bahrain, for a man killed on Wednesday after an incident with a police jeep, before the march was dispersed by security forces:

See also Bahrain Special: The Commission of Inquiry's Report...& 14 Key Points About It
Egypt LiveBlog: The Fighting Resumes
Wednesday's Bahrain (and Beyond) LiveBlog: The Report of the Commission of Inquiry

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2013 GMT: Claimed footage from Ala'ali in Bahrain of stone-throwing youth defying fire from security forces:

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