(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - “The will [to stop the crackdown in Bahrain] is not there and it is clear that it is not there,” Richard Becker, of the A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition, said in an interview on Wednesday.
Becker criticized the Western media, especially those of the US, for not covering the events in Bahrain, adding that they are ignoring “a historic shift in the region... which is not going to be stopped.”
“I think that we have already seen [the] products of that [historic shift]: the revolutionary uprising in Egypt has led to ... a new attempted unification of the Palestinian organizations in order to confront Israel, ... the opening of the border with Gaza..., if it goes through,” the political observer said.
He also noted that the US reaction to the events in Bahrain would have been totally different if the same events were to happen in a country that the US deems as unfriendly.
“Imagine this was a regime that the US was at odds with, this would be a huge news story so everyone would know about it,” he further explained.
Becker also pointed out that the only way the royal families in the Persian Gulf states can stay in power is through “unlimited violence against their own populations” because the people of these countries do not want their autocratic regimes.
The analyst, however, said the aspirations of these people run counter to the interests of big Western corporations.
“Those royal families are very rich themselves but their wealth is really dwarfed by the wealth that their collaboration has enabled the biggest corporate interests in the Western world to accrue over these very many years," Becker said.
Since mid-February, thousands of anti-government protesters in Bahrain have poured into the streets, calling for an end to the ruling of Al Khalifa dynasty, which has ruled the country for almost forty years.
On March 13, Saudi-led forces were dispatched to the Persian Gulf island at Manama's request to quell the countrywide protests.
Since the deployment of Saudi troops in Bahrain, Manama has shown itself capable of great brutality in suppressing the anti-regime protesters.
Scores of protesters have been killed and many others arrested and sent to unknown locations during Manama's violent crackdowns on anti-government protesters. A number of the deaths were caused by and occurred under torture.
Regime forces have also raided dozens of mosques, schools, sacred sites and even graves in persisting efforts to suppress all opposition.
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