MANAMA: Bahraini police will question key members of the opposition movement Al-Wefaq for what it said were “violations” committed during a pro-democracy rally, Bahrain’s state news agency BNA reported on Saturday.

Al-Wefaq said its secretary-general, Sheikh Ali Salman, was among those being questioned and that his house had been heavily surrounded by armed government troops. Bahrain’s Ministry of Interior and police were not immediately available to comment.

In 2011, Bahrain stamped out Arab Spring-inspired, mass pro-democracy demonstrations with the help of the Saudi military.

Despite some reconciliation efforts, the tiny Gulf Arab kingdom’s Sunni rulers have failed to solve its conflict with the opposition, which says the government discriminates against Bahrain’s Shia majority.

BNA reported that a pre-authorised rally of around 2000 protesters took place late on Friday on Budaiya Highway, which links the capital Manama to the northwestern town of Budaiya.

Published in Dawn, December 28th, 2014