Bahrain Mirror: The Bahraini government's decision on June 4 to shutter al-Wasat indefinitely yet again underscores the regime's on-going assault on the freedom of expression and independent media, said Emile Nakhleh in an artcile published on Lobelog.

The Middle East expert noted that the Bahraini information ministry claimed in its statement that it shut down the newspaper for its "violation of the law and repeatedly publishing information that sows division in society and affects Bahrain's relations with other states." The claim is bogus and groundless, he stressed, as previous official statements against al-Wasat and other mainstream peaceful opposition and electronic media outlets have shown.

Nakhleh further stated that the decision is not surprising given the regime's history of repression and systematic human rights abuses. "What is surprising, however, is that neither President Donald J. Trump nor Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson, both of whom have traveled recently to the Persian Gulf, have protested Bahrain's draconian measure against the only newspaper in the country that does not kowtow to the regime."

Why al-Wasat?

The political analyst explained that Al-Wasat persisted in its push for political reform, non-sectarian national dialogue, equality under the law, and fair and free national elections. Although the newspaper and its editor-in-chief, Mansoor al-Jamri, remained faithful to their peaceful approach to political change for over a decade, they became the bête noire of the regime. They continued to publish, albeit on a precarious footing.

"Since the Arab Spring, the rise of the 14 February Youth Coalition in Bahrain in 2011, and the unfolding of the confrontational "Days of Rage," regime policies against peaceful protesters became bloodier and more draconian. The security services and regime-condoned anti-terror squads muzzled all voices of opposition, including the press," he added.

As the uprising continued, Nakhle said al-Wasat and al-Jamri walked a tight rope between their commitment to reform through peaceful means and the hardening of the anti-reform faction within the ruling family. "Thousands of people were arrested on dubious charges, tortured, and convicted in sham trials. Al-Wasat was banned three times since 2011 on the spurious claim that it undermined domestic stability. The June 4 ban has put the newspaper out of business indefinitely."

Why Now?

Nakhleh further pointed out that the regime's decision against al-Wasat was empowered by the Saudi, UAE, Egyptian, and Bahraini coalition against Qatar. "The ruling family viewed its shuttering of al-Wasat as part of the four dictatorships' campaign against free press in the region. The regime has viewed its decision to ban the newspaper and the four countries' demand that Qatar close Al Jazeera as two sides of the same coin."

Concluding his article, the Middle East expert stressed that the four autocratic regimes failed to realize that although Trump led them to believe they had his support, his administration does not have a single voice on the feud in the Persian Gulf. "Their aggression against Qatar has backfired. Al Jazeera will continue to broadcast. So far, al-Wasat and al-Jamri remain the only casualty in the new Arab "cold war." Will the Bahraini people allow this decision to stand?"

Arabic Version