Riot Police Attack Bahrain Protesters

    Riot police in Bahrain firing teargas(催泪性毒气) and rubber bullets have stormed the main square of the capital, Manama, driving out hundreds of anti-government protesters who had set up camp and demanded sweeping 1 political changes for the island kingdom.

    Security forces moved into Pearl Square before dawn Thursday, attacking demonstrators（示威者） who have occupied the area for three days. There was no immediate 2 word on casualties.  A witness told Al Jazeera television that women and children were in the crowd. Many people were rushed to local hospitals.

    Police held back Wednesday as tens of thousands of Bahrainis gathered, dramatically expanding pro-democracy protests. By nightfall, the massive, jubilant crowd of mostly Shi'ite activists 3 had swelled 4 in Pearl Square following a day of peaceful protests. Earlier, hundreds had joined a procession to mourn one of two demonstrators killed since Monday.

    Shi'ite opposition 5 leaders issued assurances Wednesday they are not interested in transforming the monarchy 6 into an Iran-style theocracy 7.

    The Wall Street Journal  reported that seven opposition groups, including the leading Shi'ite al-Wefaq party, announced they have formed a committee to help coordinate 8 protest activity and unify 9 the protesters' demands. The Journal  said the committee plans large demonstrations 10 on Saturday.

    Wefaq's leader, Sheik Ali Salman, told a news conference Wednesday his organization "is not looking for a religious government like Iran's," but wants a civilian 11 democracy that represents both Shi'ites and Sunnis.

    The Khalifa family, which has ruled Bahrain since the 18th century, is Sunni Muslim and has long had tense relations with the country's Shi'ite majority. The king recruits foreigners to serve as police rather than trust Shi'ite citizens to wear uniforms and carry weapons.

    About half of the island kingdom's 1.3 million people are Bahraini, while the rest are foreign workers. Shi'ites make up 70 percent of the population.

    In 2001, voters overwhelmingly（压倒性的） approved a national charter to lead the way toward democratic changes. But a year later, the king imposed a constitution by decree that Shi'ite leaders say has diluted 12 the rights in the charter and blocked them from achieving a majority in the parliament.

    Al-Wefaq leaders say the group's 18 deputies will not return to the 40-member parliament until King Hamad bin 13 Isa al-Khalifa agrees to transform the nation into a constitutional democracy with an elected government.

    Many of the protesters in Pearl Square say they will remain until they achieve their goals. Some are openly calling for the dynasty's ouster, while others demand the immediate resignation of longtime Bahraini Prime Minister Sheik Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa. Demonstrators also want Bahrain's ruling family to free political prisoners and create more opportunities for majority Shi'ites, who have long complained of discrimination.

    Activists filled Pearl Square Wednesday after setting up a tent camp and spending a first night in the open. The protest site mirrors the occupation of Cairo's Tahrir Square by Egyptian activists who ousted 14 their president last week.

    Bahrain's king made a rare televised address Tuesday, offering condolences for the deaths of the two Shi'ite protesters and promising 15 an investigation 16 into the incidents. He also vowed 17 to push ahead with political reforms that he began with a 2001 referendum that restored a parliament the following year.

    Bahrain is home to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet and also is a regional offshore 18 banking 19 center.（本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑）