Bahrain’s Pearl Square becomes the new Tahrir

• Thousands of protesters took over a main square in Bahrain's capital on Tuesday — carting in tents and raising banners — in a bold attempt to copy Egypt's uprising and force high-level changes in one of Washington's key allies in the Gulf.
• The move by demonstrators capped two days of clashes across the tiny island kingdom that left at least two people dead, Parliament in limbo by an opposition boycott and the king making a rare address on national television to offer condolences for the bloodshed.
• Security forces — apparently under orders to hold back — watched from the sidelines as protesters gathered at Pearl Square chanted slogans mocking the nation's ruling sheiks and called for sweeping political reforms and an end to monarchy's grip on key decisions and government posts.
• The unrest in Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, adds another layer to Washington's worries in the region. In Yemen, police and government supporters battled nearly 3,000 marchers calling for the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh in a fifth straight day of violence.
• Yemen is seen as a critical partner in the U.S. fight against a network inspired by al-Qaeda. The Pentagon plans to boost its training of Yemen's counterterrorism forces to expand the push against the al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula faction, which has been linked to attacks including the attempted airliner bombing in December 2009 and the failed mail bomb plot involving cargo planes last summer.
• The key demands — listed on a poster erected in the square — included the release of all political prisoners, more jobs and housing, an elected Cabinet and the replacement of the longtime Prime Minister, Sheik Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa.
• Bahrain's leaders have for years granted citizenship to Sunnis from across the region to expand their base of loyalists and try to gain demographic ground against Shias, about 70 per cent of the population of some 500,000. Many of the Sunnis — Jordanians, Syrians and others — receive police jobs or other security-related posts.
• Bahrain is one of the most politically volatile nations in West Asia's wealthiest corner despite having one of the few elected Parliaments and some of the most robust civil society groups.
• The nation's Shias have long complained of discrimination. A crackdown on perceived dissent last year touched off weeks of riots and clashes in Shia villages, and an ongoing trial in Bahrain accuses 25 Shias of plotting against the leadership. The detainees allege they have been tortured behind bars.
• Bahrain is also an economic weakling compared with the staggering energy riches of Gulf neighbours such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar, which can afford far more generous social benefits. Bahrain's oil reserves are small and its role as the region's international financial hub have been greatly eclipsed by Dubai.