Bahrain was one of the first countries in the Gulf to discover oil and build a refinery. It would never reach the production levels enjoyed by Kuwait or Saudi Arabia, and therefore needed to diversify its economy.
The country is ruled by a Sunni king whose family holds key political and military positions. The rift between the Shiite majority and Sunni rulers has led to long-term tensions that have sporadically boiled over into civil disobedience.
Bahrain was once seen as a promising model for political reform and democratic transition, but since quashing popular pro-democracy protests in 2011, the monarchy has restricted a wide range of political rights and civil liberties. have been systematically excluded.
Kingdom of Bahrain: Facts
- capital: manama
- area: 786.5 square kilometers
- population: 1.4 million
- language: Arabic and English too
- Average life: 78 years old (male) 80 years old (female)
leader
King: Sheikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa
Sheikh Hamad, who has led the country since 1999, changed his title from Emir to King when Bahrain became a kingdom in 2002.
Born in 1950, he was educated at Cambridge Public Schools and later studied at Mons Cadet School, Aldershot, England, and the US Army Command and Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, England.
Under his leadership, the country has faced protests and civil unrest by the Shi’ite majority, with demonstrators claiming the ruling Sunni minority is keeping them out of housing, health care and government jobs. There is.
The media is under strict government control. The major television and radio networks are state-owned, and newspapers follow pro-government editorials.
Media watchdog Freedom House said the law was being used to detain or imprison critical journalists and online activists.
Bahrain has one of the highest internet penetration rates in the Arab world.
Timeline
Important dates in Bahrain’s history:
1602-1783 – Persian rule.
1783 – Ruled by the head of the Khalifa family.
1861 – Britain assumes responsibility for Bahrain’s defense and foreign relations.
1913 – Britain and the Ottoman government sign a treaty recognizing Bahrain’s independence, but the country remains under British rule.
1931 – Bahrain Petroleum Company (Bapco), a subsidiary of Standard Oil Company of California (SoCal), discovers oil in Jabal Al Duhan, and production begins next year.
1967 – Britain moved the region’s main naval base from Aden to Bahrain a year before deciding to close all bases east of Suez by 1971.
1970 ・Iran under the Shah’s regime renounced its territorial rights to Bahrain, but its successor, the Islamic Republic of Iran, has not recognized this renunciation.
1971 – Bahrain declares independence and signs new treaty of friendship with Britain. Sheikh Isa became the first head of state, and the Council of State became the cabinet.
1981 – Bahrain will join the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which also includes Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
1986 – Opening of the King Fahd causeway connecting Bahrain and mainland Saudi Arabia.
1991 – Bahrain signs a defense cooperation agreement with the US, providing port facilities and joint military exercises.
2001 – Referendum on political reform. Bahrainis overwhelmingly support the proposal for Bahrain to become a constitutional monarchy with an elected lower house and an independent judiciary.
2011 – Protesters gather in Manama, inspired by popular uprisings that overthrew rulers in Tunisia and Egypt. Saudi forces participate in the crackdown.
2018 – Bahrain reports discovery of the kingdom’s largest oil field in more than 80 years.
Sheikh Ali Salman, the opposition leader of the banned Al-Wefaq party, has been sentenced to life in prison on charges of spying for Bahrain’s rival Qatar. Human rights groups have criticized the trial as politically motivated.