No doubt you’re now well versed on the troubles in Bahrain and the fact thousands of protesters are taking to the streets to promote their cause to the watching global audience.
Happily, on two fronts, we can report that the protests so far this week seem to have been peaceful in their nature and the F1 circus appears to have arrived without major interruption. According to a recent tweet from Paul Hembrey of Pirelli, “all arrived in Bahrain. No different to previous visits. Kind lovely people looks normal.” Although he also adds, “Clearly different story outside in villages.”
We decided we’d do a quick search for recent images showing what the protesters have been up to in recent days. They help to capture the mood at street level ahead of this weekend’s race.
We hope things remain peaceful, although speaking to the Telegraph, Jasim Husain, a former Bahraini politician, warns, “There is this fear, the fear is there that we could see some casualties.”
There are also concerns the imminent death of imprisoned human rights activist Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, now in the third month of a hunger strike, will see protesters react with greater force.
Tom Cary, covering the build up for the Telegraph, delivers this quote from a local taxi driver: “I have two emotions. One is that I am proud to have such a big event in Bahrain. But the other part of me feels shame. You will be welcome here because you are guests in my country but you will be racing over blood this weekend.â€
[Pics: Telegraph, Sportsnet, twitter, AFP]
