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"We will ask legislators to look into this issue and suggest needed laws to resolve it." However, human rights activist Alkwaka said attacking peaceful protesters casts doubt on his credibility as numbers of deaths and injuries rise.
Initially, protesters demanded a constitutional monarchy. Now after days of violence, many want the ruling family ousted. "Bring down the government," thousands chanted, including women and children. An identified surgeon for his safety said Bahrain's Health Ministry prevented ambulances from reaching victims. Police beat medical staff. Wefaq's Hussein Mohammed called it "a slaughter." Taghreed Hussein said "We are a people of mourners now, we have nothing" as she and others suffered in grief.
Bahrain is strategically important to Washington as home for its Fifth Fleet. It's responsible for security in the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important chokepoint for 16 million daily barrels of oil, the Bab-el-Mandeb strait separating Yemen from Eritrea through which three million barrels of oil pass daily, the Gulf of Oman, Red Sea, Suez Canal, Arabian Sea, Mediterranean Sea, and parts of the Indian Ocean. Thus, security remains tight and ready to respond violently if Bahrainians try breaching base defenses.
Libyan Protests
On February 17, Al Jazeera headlined "Deadly 'day of rage' in Libya," saying:
Reports say over a dozen demonstrators were killed in clashes with security and pro-government forces. Faiz Jibril, an opposition leader in exile told Libyans to "br(ake) the barrier of fear, it is a new dawn." A Benghazi eye witness told Al Jazeera he saw police kill six unarmed protesters Thursday. He also said 30 released prisoners were armed and paid to attack people demonstrating peacefully.
Mohammed Al Abdellah, deputy leader of the exiled National Front for the Salvation of Libya, said al-Baida hospitals were short of medical supplies because authorities refused to supply them for dozens being admitted, some critically with gunshot wounds.
In Zentan, southwest of the capital, government buildings were set ablaze. Deaths were reported in a number of cities. Darnah and protesters in other cities were chanting "the people want the ouster of the regime."
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