Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Crisis in the Middle East: Bahrain

Well, I'm feeling better.  Or at least I was until I started looking at the news.  The Middle East is going up in flames.  Things are really getting bad in Bahrain.  The Saudis sent troops there (GCC Peninsula Shield troops), and now the king has declared a "three-month state of emergency."  This after 200 people were shot.  One of the big reasons for the unrest in Bahrain isn't just having a king with little democracy.  It's the fact that the king and most of the rulers are Sunni, while most of the population is Shi'ite.  Does that sound familiar to anyone?  It should.  That's how Iraq was under Saddam Hussein.  And look how well that turned out!

The GCC is supporting Bahrain, which makes sense.  Even the UAE is sending some troops.  The GCC is paranoid that if Shi'ites take over, they'll be under the control of Iran.  So this battleground is a lot more complicated than some crazy dictator oppressing his people (like Libya).  The US is also supporting the rulers of Bahrain.  Things are probably going to get worse before they get better.

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