Bahrainis hold mass rallies to mark revolution anniversary

Bahrainis have staged mass anti-regime demonstrations to mark the second anniversary of their revolution despite a heavy-handed crackdown by the Al Khalifa regime.

The protest rallies were held in several villages, including Sitra, Karzakan, Barbar and Dair, on Friday.

The demonstrators called for the downfall of the Al Khalifa regime and an end to the crackdown on peaceful demonstrations. They also demanded the immediate release of political prisoners.

Bahrainis have staged protests across the country over the past few days and plan to go on a general strike on February 14 to commemorate the revolution in the Persian Gulf nation.

On Thursday, hundreds of Bahraini protesters took to the streets in the capital, Manama, and several other villages to mark the revolution anniversary.

Bahrainis have been staging demonstrations since mid-February 2011, demanding political reform and a constitutional monarchy; a demand that later changed to an outright call for the ouster of the ruling Al Khalifa family following its crackdown on popular protests.

Bahrainis say they will continue holding anti-regime demonstrations until their demands for the establishment of a democratically-elected government and an end to rights violations are met.