First Iranian convoy sets sail to Bahrain

The first convoy of Iranian activists has set sail towards Bahrain to show solidarity with the people of Bahrain and condemn Manama’s crackdown on protesters.

“The convoy’s main ship has been named Ayat al-Ghermezi after deceased Bahraini poetess and the other one is named Arc of Salvation,” Head of the Islamic Revolution Supporters Society Mahdi Eqrarian said on Monday.

Al-Ghermezi, who had slammed Bahrain’s ruling regime in her poems, was arrested and raped by Bahraini security forces in April. She later passed away at the army hospital.

“We have set sail towards international waters, and we will get as close as possible to Bahrain’s borders to deliver the messages of Iranian people to the Bahrainis,” Fars News Agency quoted Eqrarian as saying.

One hundred and twenty Iranian activists, including women and children, are on board ships.

Since the beginning of anti-government protests in Bahrain in mid-February, scores of protesters have been killed and many others went missing.

Bahraini security forces, backed by Saudi Arabia, are brutally cracking down on demonstrators.

According to opposition groups, over 800 anti-government activists, including 17 women, have been arrested.

Protesters, who are demanding an end to the rule of the Al Khalifa dynasty, say they will continue their street demonstrations until their demands for freedom, constitutional monarchy as well as a proportional voice in the government are met.