Bahrain Mirror: A cable issued by the Gulf Cooperation Council's delegation to Brussels showed that the resolution adopted by the European Parliament on January 17, 2013 on Bahrain comprised of two clauses that were omitted: imposing sanctions against Bahraini officials and reconsidering the European Union's relations with Bahrain. The cable published by the WikiLeaks Website entitled "Saudi Cables" was a letter sent to the Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Abdul Latif Al-Zayani, a day after the resolution was made (January 18, 2013), which stated: "Thanks to the tireless efforts of his Excellency, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Bahrain, the draft resolution was amended. A clause that contains ‘imposing sanctions including travel ban and asset freezing' was omitted and a clause that contains ‘reconsidering the EU's current economic and diplomatic relations with Bahrain' was also omitted."

"Although the delegation and the ambassadors of the GCC member states communicate with the members of the European Parliament and provide them with information, some members of the European Parliament still issue statements and resolutions based on information far from reality about the situation in Bahrain and still adhere to their stances that tend to be hardline sometimes," the GCC delegation added.

The delegation blamed this on "the pressure exerted by European civil society organizations on the European Parliament, especially with regard to Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja."

The Arabic Issue