FAULT LINES

摘要

The January execution of a prominent Shia cleric by Saudi Arabia inflamed sectarian tensions across the Middle East and provoked a rupture in relations between Riyadh and Tehran. Few countries are as vulnerable to the passions as Bahrain. Sandwiched between Saudi Arabia and Iran, the Gulf island nation has long been caught in a tug-of-war between the feuding regional powerhouses and the strands of Islam they represent. Bahrain doesn't just sit on the region's Sunni-Shia fault line; it embodies it. King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa heads a Sunni monarchy that rules uneasily over a largely Shia population. Those tensions erupted five years ago, when protesters, inspired by the Arab Spring uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt, took to the streets to demand sweeping democratic reforms. The government accused Iran of inciting the demonstrations and welcomed the deployment of Saudi troops in the capital, Manama, to buttress the monarchy. After a month of mass protests, the government unleashed a brutal crackdown that left dozens dead and thousands injured and imprisoned. Since then an uneasy calm has prevailed, with sporadic small protests taking place in Shia villages.