A day after the Justice Ministry drew U.S. criticism for saying it would shut down the Wefaq party and another group, the government says no action will be taken until an investigation is completed.
Reporting from Washington—
Bahrain backed down Friday from its threat to disband the country's main opposition party after unusually strong criticism from the United States that the strategic Persian Gulf nation was closing the door to promised political reforms.
One day after the Bahraini Justice Ministry said it would shut down two Shiite Muslim political parties, including the moderate Wefaq, the state-run news agency said the government would not act until it had finished investigations of the two groups.
Foreign Minister Sheik Khalid ibn Ahmed Khalifa also said on Twitter that the official statement from the Justice Ministry had been "incorrect" and that "all societies, including Al Wefaq, are encouraged to participate in elections and serve the people through parliament."
The Obama administration, a strong ally of the Bahraini government, had defended the parties as "legitimate political societies" and had urged reversal of the decision. U.S. officials also spoke privately with senior Bahraini officials and dispatched the chief U.S. diplomat for the region, assistant Secretary of State Jeffrey Feltman, to Manama, the capital.
A U.S. official said late Friday that Bahrain's intentions remain somewhat murky because of the conflicting signals.
The Obama administration has come under growing criticism from human rights groups in the Middle East for not doing more to try to halt Bahrain's crackdown on the opposition.
In recent weeks, Bahrain's government has jailed hundreds of people arrested in overnight raids, curbed media criticism and fired government employees accused of taking part in protests. At least three people have died in detention, and human rights activists have posted video clips that they allege provide evidence of torture.
The Obama administration has been measured in its criticism, however. Washington seeks stability in Bahrain, which borders a close ally, Saudi Arabia, and which is home to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet.
Mansoor Jamri, who was forced out of his job as editor in chief of the independent Al Wasat newspaper, called the U.S. policy "perplexing."
Until March 14, when the Saudis signaled their determination to maintain the status quo by sending in troops to quell protests, "the United States was enthusiastic about encouraging reforms within the current political system. Since then, they seem to have kept their heads in the sand," said Jamri, who is under investigation by the government on allegations of preparing false reports.Continued
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