The Obama administration has remained
silent as the U.S.-backed regime in Bahrain has demolished dozens of
Shiite mosques. The destruction, which has reduced centuries-old
mosques to rubble, is just one aspect of the brutal repression of the
mass uprising against the dictatorship. Protesters
have been sentenced to death in secret trials, nurses and doctors who
treated injured protesters have been jailed, the only opposition
newspaper has been closed and opposition politicians have been
arrested.
The
destruction of mosques is seen as a particularly vindictive attack on
the community. The Amir Mohammed Braighi mosque, which stood for
more than 400 years in the village of Aali, and where graves date as
far back as 2000 B.C., is just one of the mosques. Now, only
bulldozer tracks mark the site. The Obama administration’s
reluctance to raise objections may be explained by the fact that
Bahrain is strategically located in the Persian Gulf, and that it is
home to the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet.
