Pressure Mounts on Human Rights Abuse in Bahrain, undergound acts of violence aimed at Shiites increase

Bahrain mosque damage shows plight to ease unrest
21 March, 2012 – By Brian Murphy – Associated Press – The Daily Star

MANAMA: At some point before dawn, the vandals struck with brutal efficiency, smashing the windows at one of Bahrain’s oldest Shiite mosques. Then the attackers walked over the broken shards to ransack offices and prayer areas – making sure to pull down some framed parchments with Quranic verses.

The attack last week, described by scholars and custodians of the centuries-old site, was quickly overshadowed by another wave of clashes in Bahrain’s 13-month-old uprising by the kingdom’s Shiite majority.

But even as the beleaguered Sunni monarchy claims progress toward reconciliation, the battered facade of the Sasa’a bin Sawhan mosque underscored the deep anger and suspicions that still feed the Arab Spring’s longest-running street battles – which show no signs of ending.

“I am horrified,” said Bahrain-based historian Jassim al-Abass following the March 13 attack on the site, which has connections to the earliest periods of Islam in the 7th century. “Instead of protecting mosques, officials are letting this happen.”

Bahrain’s Shiite mosques have been one of the most sensitive targets in the government’s crackdown on dissent and later attempts to make amends. Shiite clerics claim at least 38 mosques and affiliated sites, such as charity offices, were destroyed after the revolt began in February 2011. Bahrain’s Shiites – who account for about 70 percent of the population but allege they face widespread discrimination – rose up to demand a greater political voice. Some activists place the number of destroyed mosques at 55 or higher.

On Tuesday, a report given to Bahrain’s king, Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, reaffirmed plans to rebuild 12 Shiite mosques demolished last year by authorities. It’s unclear, however, what progress has been made on the sites.
…more