MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) — Security forces in Bahrain on Monday fired tear gas and stun grenades at protesters trying to occupy a landmark square in the nation's capital on the eve of the one-year anniversary of the Gulf kingdom's Shiite-led uprising.
Thousands of opposition supporters marched through the streets of Manama in the largest attempt in months to retake Pearl Square, the central roundabout that served as the epicenter of weeks of protests last year by Bahrain's Shiite majority against the ruling Sunni dynasty.
Thousands of riot police and other security forces have staked out positions around the square and across the Gulf island nation to prevent the opposition from staging a mass rally in or near the square to mark Tuesday's one-year anniversary of the revolt.
Opposition supporters were undeterred by the authorities' warnings of zero tolerance for anti-government activities around the strategic island that is the home of the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet.
Some protesters hurled firebombs and rocks after the security forces fired tear gas. In an area about six miles (10 kilometers) west of central Manama, some protesters stood atop Bahrain's famous ancient burial mounds — some more than 5,000 years old — waving flags featuring the image of Pearl Square's six-pronged monument.
After the government imposed martial law last March in response to the demonstrations, security forces stormed the protesters' encampment at the landmark square in a bid to crush the uprising. The authorities then razed the towering white monument that stood in the center of the plaza.
The now heavily guarded square holds great symbolic value for Bahrain's opposition movement, and protesters have repeatedly tried to reoccupy it. But authorities have effectively locked off the capital to demonstrations since March.
Emergency rule was lifted in June, but street battles between security forces and protesters still flare up almost every day in the predominantly Shiite villages around the capital.
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Surk reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
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