Portal:Bahrain

The Bahrain Portal

Flag of the Kingdom of Bahrain	Coat of Arms of the Kingdom of Bahrain

Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in the eastern part of Arabian Peninsula in West Asia. Situated near the western shore of the Persian Gulf, the country comprises a small archipelago of 33 natural islands and an additional 50 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which makes up around 80 percent of the country's landmass. Bahrain is situated between Qatar and the northeastern coast of Saudi Arabia, to which it is connected by the King Fahd Causeway. The population is 1,588,670 as of 2024, of whom 739,736 (46.6% of the population) are Bahraini nationals, and 848,934 are expatriates (53.4% of the population). Bahrain spans some 760 square kilometres (290 sq mi) and is the third-smallest nation in Asia after Maldives and Singapore. The capital and largest city is Manama.

The area that straddles the present-day territory of Bahrain was once the site of the ancient Dilmun civilisation. It has been famed since antiquity for its pearl fisheries, which were considered the best in the world into the 19th century. Bahrain was one of the earliest areas to be influenced by Islam, during the lifetime of Muhammad in 628. Following a period of Arab rule, Bahrain was ruled by the Portuguese Empire from 1521 until 1602, when they were expelled by Shah Abbas the Great of the Safavid Iran. In 1783, the Bani Utbah and allied tribes captured Bahrain from Nasr Al-Madhkur. It has since been ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family, with Ahmed al Fateh as Bahrain's first hakim.

In the late 19th century, following successive treaties with the British, Bahrain became a protectorate of the United Kingdom. In 1971, it declared independence. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a semi-constitutional monarchy in 2002, and Article 2 of the constitution made sharia a principal source for legislation. In 2011, the country experienced protests inspired by the regional Arab Spring. The ruling Sunni Muslim Al Khalifa royal family has been criticised for violating the human rights of groups including dissidents, political opposition figures, and its Shia Muslim population.

Bahrain is known as one of the first post-oil economies in the Persian Gulf, the result of decades of investing in the banking and tourism sectors. Many of the world's largest financial institutions have a presence in Manama, but oil revenues still constitute a significant part of its government budget. It is recognised by the World Bank as a high-income economy. Bahrain is a member of the United Nations, the Non-Aligned Movement, the Arab League, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, and the Gulf Cooperation Council. It is a Dialogue partner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. (Full article...)

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The Supreme Council for Women (SCW) is Bahrain's advisory body to the government on women's issues. It is chaired by Sheikha Sabika bint Ibrahim Al Khalifa, the wife of Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. The current Secretary General of SCW is Hala Al Ansari.

SCW was established to promote women's rights in the Kingdom and women's full participation in society, and has been at the forefront of the campaign for the introduction of a unified personal status law (see Women's rights in Bahrain). It has also published studies, worked to coordinate campaigns with other women's rights groups, and sought to promote female candidates for the 2006 municipal and general elections. Among the candidates contesting the 2006 poll, held on 26 November 2006, was the Council's Dr Munira Fakhro, who stood for the ex-Marxist Waad. (Full article...)

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Manama

Skyline with roads, towers and harbour of Manama, Bahrain

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Abdulhadi al-Khawaja is widely regarded as the most prominent in the group.

The Bahrain Thirteen (Arabic: البحرين ثلاثة عشر, romanized: al-Baḥrayn Thalāthat ʻAshar) are thirteen Bahraini opposition leaders, rights activists, bloggers and Shia clerics arrested between 17 March and 9 April 2011 in connection with their role in the national uprising. In June 2011, they were tried by a special military court, the National Safety Court, and convicted of "setting up terror groups to topple the royal regime and change the constitution"; they received sentences ranging from two years to life in prison. A military appeal court upheld the sentences in September. The trial was "one of the most prominent" before the National Safety Court. A retrial in a civilian court was held in April 2012 but the accused were not released from prison. The sentences were upheld again on 4 September 2012. On 7 January 2013, the defendants lost their last chance of appeal when the Court of Cassation, Bahrain's top court upheld the sentences.

The thirteen are Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, Abdulhadi al-Mukhodher, Abduljalil al-Miqdad, Abduljalil al-Singace, Abdulla al-Mahroos, Abdulwahab Hussain, Hasan Mushaima, Ibrahim Sharif, Mohamed Habib al-Miqdad, Mohamed Hasan Jawad, Mohamed Ismail, Sa’eed al-Nuri and Salah al-Khawaja. They were originally twenty-one, but seven were tried in absentia and one was released in April 2012. The thirteen became popular heroes in Bahrain, and analysts speculated that the government was concerned that their release might re-energize the protest movement and frustrate government supporters who oppose any royal pardons. (Full article...)

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General images -
The following are images from various Bahrain-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1A map of Bahrain in 1825 (from Bahrain)
Image 2Greater flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus) are native to Bahrain. (from Bahrain)
Image 3The Persian Empire in the Sassanid era on the eve of the Arab conquest, c. 600 AD (from Bahrain)
Image 4The National Library of Bahrain at Isa Cultural Centre (from Bahrain)
Image 5The King Hamad American Mission Hospital. (from Bahrain)
Image 6Manama seen from Muharraq (from Bahrain)
Image 7The Shrinathji temple in Manama (from Bahrain)
Image 8The First Oil Well in Bahrain, with oil first being extracted in 1931 (from Bahrain)
Image 9Bahrainis observing public prayers in Manama (from Bahrain)
Image 10A 1745 Bellin map of the historical region of Bahrain (from Bahrain)
Image 11A view of Arad Fort (from History of Bahrain)
Image 12Protesters at the Pearl Roundabout just before it was demolished (from Bahrain)
Image 13A map showing the locations of Bahrain's ancient burial mounds. There are an estimated 350,000 burial mounds. (from Bahrain)
Image 14The Portuguese Fort of Barém, built by the Portuguese when they ruled Bahrain from 1521 to 1602 (from Bahrain)
Image 15The Tree of Life, a 9.75 metre high Prosopis cineraria tree that is over 400 years old (from Bahrain)
Image 16The Isa ibn Ali Al Khalifa house is an example of traditional architecture in Bahrain. (from Bahrain)
Image 17The King Fahd Causeway as seen from space (from Bahrain)
Image 18Bahrain was the tenth most water-stressed country in the world in 2022. (from Bahrain)
Image 19The National Union Committee members in 1954 (from History of Bahrain)
Image 20The coronation of Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa as the Hakim of Bahrain in February 1933 (from Bahrain)
Image 21The emir Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa heads the opening session of the first conference on the formation of a union of the Gulf emirates in February 1968. (from History of Bahrain)
Image 22The Portuguese Fort in 1870. (from History of Bahrain)
Image 23Manama Harbour, c. 1870 (from Bahrain)
Image 24Overview of Manama, 1953 (from Bahrain)
Image 25Shaikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, the King of Bahrain (from Bahrain)
Image 26Dilmun burial mounds in 1918. (from History of Bahrain)
Image 27Manama souq in 1965 (from Bahrain)
Image 28The proposed federation of Arab emirates (from History of Bahrain)
Image 29The Khamis Mosque in 1956. (from History of Bahrain)
Image 30Phoenicians man their ships in service to Assyrian king Sennacherib, during his war against the Chaldeans in the Persian Gulf, ca. 700 BC (from History of Bahrain)
Image 31Bahrain province before Independence, was simultaneously part of Iran, a British protectorate whilst at the same time it was ruled "locally" by the Al-Khalifa tribe. (from History of Bahrain)
Image 32The historical region of Bahrain on a 1745 Bellin map (from History of Bahrain)
Image 33King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa meets American president Donald Trump in May 2017. (from Bahrain)
Image 34Manama skyline as viewed from Juffair (from Bahrain)
Image 35The new terminal of the Bahrain International Airport (from Bahrain)
Image 36Coronation of Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa as the Hakim of Bahrain in 1933. (from History of Bahrain)
Image 37Purple – Portuguese Empire in the Persian Gulf in the 16th and 17th centuries (modern boundaries shown). Main cities, ports and routes. (from Bahrain)
Image 38The podium ceremony at the 2007 Bahrain Grand Prix (from Bahrain)
Image 39An artisan making pottery using the traditional mud and water mixture on a revolving wheel (from Bahrain)
Image 40A mixed martial arts event in Bahrain (from Bahrain)
Image 41The view from outside one of the entrance gates at the Avenues (from Bahrain)
Image 42The cities of Muharraq (foreground) and Manama (background) (from Bahrain)
Image 43Inside Riffa Fort (from History of Bahrain)
Image 44Bahraini protests against the ruling Al Khalifa family in 2011 (from Bahrain)
Image 45Female students at the University of Bahrain dressed in traditional garb (from Bahrain)
Image 46Location of the Dilmun burial mounds in Bahrain. (from History of Bahrain)
Image 47The Bahrain Fort, location of Dilmun artifacts. (from History of Bahrain)
Image 48Al-Hidaya Al-Khalifia Boys school. (from History of Bahrain)
Image 49A view of the Grand Avenue section of the Avenues (from Bahrain)
Image 50The Manama Souq on Bahrain National Day (from Bahrain)

Did you know -

... that a government commission has found that Bahrain Public Security Forces involved in Arab spring protests sometimes used force and firearms unnecessarily and in a disproportionate manner?

More Did you know (auto-generated)

... that between 2006 and 2007, Stacy Hollowell worked for basketball teams in Qatar, China, Bahrain and Lithuania?
... that the first Chinese driver to race in Formula One debuted at the 2022 Bahrain Grand Prix?
... that hurdler Ahmed Hamada was the Bahraini flagbearer for two Olympic Games – sixteen years apart?
... that Bahraini author Fatema Al Harbi, the first non-government Bahraini to visit Israel, faced death threats upon her return to Bahrain?

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