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Bahrain Timeline 2010–2016

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Bahrain Timeline 2010–2016 Bahrain Timeline 2010–2016 COLOR KEY: ■ EVENTS IN BAHRAIN ■ HUMAN RIGHTS FIRST REPORTS ■ U.S. GOVERNMENT ACTIONS/STATEMENTS 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 —— DECEMBER 3 —— FEBRUARY 14–16: Mass protests break out in Bahrain, voicing a range of grievances including —— FEBRUARY: Bahrain: The —— FEBRUARY 10: A new round of —— JULY 7 —— JANUARY 20: —— JANUARY 12: political and socio-economic concerns. Police open fire killing two protestors. Gathering Storm “reconciliation talks” begins, Court sentences Triggered by —— FEBRUARY 17: Police clear the Pearl Roundabout. Hundreds of protestors are injured and three —— MAY 5 excluding key opposition Nabeel Rajab the global drop are killed by police using shotguns. Al Wefaq, the political society with the largest amount of figures still in prison. to 6 months in in oil price, seats in Parliament, announces it will suspend its participation in Parliament. —— AUGUST: State Department prison for online the Bahraini releases human rights report comments made government cuts Secretary Clinton —— FEBRUARY 18–MAY 30: King Hamad declares a three month state of emergency. Hundreds of State Department: “The on Bahrain, simultaneously in 2014. subsidies on after meeting peaceful dissidents, opposition leaders, and medics are arrested and many tortured. U.S. is deeply concerned noting a failure to implement —— FEBRUARY: How gasoline, raising with Bahrain by the Government of —— MARCH 14: The Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) agrees to send troops at the request of the most of the recommendations to Bring Stability the price by Foreign Minister the Kingdom of Bahrain’s Bahraini Government. Saudi Arabian troops arrive and are joined by security forces from the Authorities arrest leading while praising the King for to Bahrain 60%. in Manama: “I am decision to demand the UAE. human rights activist Nabeel “the commendable progress —— FEBRUARY: impressed by the immediate departure of —— JUNE 16: Sheikh —— MARCH 16: Secretary Clinton: “We find what’s happening in Bahrain alarming. We think that Rajab and detain him for 24 already underway.” Increase in raids commitment that Tom Malinowski, Assistant Ali Salman is there is no security answer to the aspirations and demands of the demonstrators.” days. and arrests prior the government has —— SEPTEMBER 18: Khalil Secretary of State for sentenced to four to the five-year to the democratic —— MARCH 18: Government forces demolish the Pearl Roundabout Monument. —— MAY: Bahrain’s Reforms—No Marzooq, a leading figure Democracy, Human years in prison. anniversary of path that Bahrain’s Backdown on Crackdown in the opposition Al Wefaq Rights, and Labor, from —— APRIL 1–11: At least four individuals are tortured to death while in custody. —— JUNE 19: After February 14th. walking on.” —— MAY 11 political movement, is the country.” four years in —— APRIL 4–OCTOBER: Military trials begin for civilians who participated in the uprisings. arrested on charges of inciting —— AUGUST: Congressman prison, activist Hundreds of Bahrainis are tried and sentenced in these “National Safety Courts.” terrorism. Jim McGovern refused and former leader of the secular opposition —— APRIL–MAY: The government destroys dozens of Shi’a mosques and religious sites. —— NOVEMBER: Plan B for entry to Bahrain. society Wa’ad, Ibrahim Sharif, is released. Bahrain: What the United —— MAY: Bahrain: Speaking Softly —— OCTOBER–NOVEMBER: —— JUNE 29: State Department Spokesperson States Government Should —— MAY 19: President Obama: “And for this season of change to succeed, Coptic Christians must Authorities arrest John Kirby: “The Administration has decided Do Next to lift the holds on security assistance to have the right to worship freely in Cairo, just as Shia must never have their mosques destroyed U.S. senior administration Nabeel Rajab for online the Bahrain Defense Force and National in Bahrain… The only way forward is for the government and opposition to engage in a dialogue, officials: “Now in light of our comments and detain Guard… The government of Bahrain has and you can’t have a real dialogue when parts of the peaceful opposition are in jail.” own U.S. national security interests, the United States has decided, as him for one month. made some meaningful progress on human the press statement noted, to release additional items and services —— NOVEMBER: A coalition —— JUNE 22: Thirteen leading opposition figures, rights activists, bloggers, and Shi’a clerics known rights reforms and reconciliation.” as the “Bahrain 13” are convicted on charges of terrorism by a military court. for the Bahraini Defense Forces, Bahrain’s Coast Guard, and Bahrain’s of Bahrain’s opposition National Guard.” parties, including —— JULY 12 —— JUNE 29: King Hamad establishes an Independent Commission chaired by international lawyer Al-Wefaq, boycott the Ibrahim Sharif is rearrested three weeks Cherif Bassiouni to investigate and report on the events which occurred earlier in the year. —— JUNE 14: Bahraini court confirms the convictions against eleven of the twenty medics arrested on felony charges and acquits nine. country’s parliamentary —— JULY: Bahrain: A Tortuous Process elections, citing the —— JULY 7–DECEMBER: Authorities re-arrest Nabeel Rajab. Rajab is tried, country’s failure to reform —— SEPTEMBER 14: The Pentagon approves a proposed $53 million arms sale for Bahrain. retried, and receives two years in prison. and disappointment with —— SEPTEMBER 24–OCTOBER 1: Parliamentary elections held to replace the seats vacated by —— AUGUST: Human Rights First Lantos Testimony on Bahrain its national dialogue. Al-Wefaq. Al-Wefaq and the rest of the opposition societies boycott the election. —— AUGUST 8: DRL Assistant Secretary Michael H. Posner testimony at —— DECEMBER 4: Activist —— SEPTEMBER 29: Twenty Bahraini medical professionals arrested on felony charges after the Tom Lantos Commission on Human Rights: “We are concerned Zainab Al-Khawaja is treating protesters at the Salmaniya Medical Complex are handed jail terms of up to twenty sentenced to three years that more than a year after the release of the BICI report, we see after his release from prison. years on charges of anti-government activity. reports of continuing reprisals against Bahraini citizens who attempt in prison for peaceful —— AUGUST 6: Senators Ron Wyden and —— SEPTEMBER 29: State Department: “We are deeply disturbed by the sentencing today of 20 to exercise their universal rights to free expression and assembly.” dissent. Marco Rubio introduce S.2009, the BICI medical professionals by the National Safety Court in Bahrain.” —— DECEMBER 28: General —— SEPTEMBER 4: State Department: “We are deeply troubled by today’s Accountability Act. The bill prohibits Secretary of Al Wefaq, —— OCTOBER 12–13: Members of Congress including Senators Wyden, Casey, Durbin, Menendez, developments in which an appeals court upheld the vast majority of the selling or transferring to Bahrain of Sheikh Ali Salman, is Cardin, and Rubio urge Secretary Clinton to suspend the $53 million arms deal to Bahrain. convictions and sentences of 13 Bahraini activists.” specified weapons and crowd control arrested for speech- —— SEPTEMBER 28: A military appeals court upholds the convictions for items until Bahrain implements all 26 —— NOVEMBER: The Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry (BICI) report is released related offenses. confirming the torture of detainees, the lethal force by public security forces on civilians, and the Bahrain 13. recommendations set forth in the 2011 BICI report. the lack of accountability of officials within the security system. —— NOVEMBER 9: State Department spokesperson: “We welcome the —— NOVEMBER 23: Secretary Clinton: “We are deeply concerned about the abuses identified in ‘Declaration of Principles of Nonviolence’ issued by six opposition —— SEPTEMBER 8: Representatives Jim the [BICI] report, and urge the Government and all elements of Bahraini society to address political societies in Bahrain on November 7… We urge the McGovern, Joe Pitts, and Hank Johnson them in a prompt and systematic manner.” government and these six political societies to engage seriously introduce the House version of the BICI and practically about ways to allow for the resumption of peaceful Accountability Act, H.R.3445. demonstrations as soon as possible.” —— NOVEMBER: Recommendations to the U.S. Government on Bahrain.
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