Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Talks and Declarations as 234 Die on Sunday
Monday, November 5, 2012 at 8:38 | James Miller in EA Live, EA Middle East and Turkey, Middle East and Iran 2131 GMT: Bahrain. EA's John Horne reports:
Amidst calls for an independent investigation, the Bahrain government has blamed the opposition for the reported bombings. Minister for Information Sameera Rajab said that the attacks "are due to religious fatwas issued by some religious figures who haven't ceased inciting violence against civilians and policemen". This is a likely - if false - reference to Sheikh Isa Qassim, spiritual leader of AlWefaq, the largest opposition society. The Interior Minister implied that the deaths were an end to any possible dialogue between the regime and the opposition:
What happened was a terror act and major part of our work focuses on chasing those terrorists. Negotiation couldn't be carried out with terrorists and talks couldn't take place within this violence.
In a statement, AlWefaq condemned the incidents, adding that it is its "fixed stance to refuse violence". They also demanded "independent parties" to investigate this and previous incidents, as well as "to allow credible media and human right organizations to take part in presenting the truth to the public".
2125 GMT: Bahrain. Images, broadcast by State TV, of the victims of today's bombings: