Bahraini al-Khalifa forces use tear gas and rubber bullets against protesters, raid homes

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - Bahraini regime forces have used tear gas and rubber bullets against anti-government demonstrators and raided their homes in two villages.Police raided homes and attacked protesters in the village of Ma’ameer, about 15 kilometers (9.5 miles) south of the capital, Manama, and the western village of Shahrakan on Monday.In Shahrakan, police fired tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse protesters.Bahrainis have been holding peaceful demonstrations against the ruling Al Khalifa regime since February 2011. Regime forces continue the fierce crackdown on the protests.On May 3, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa approved constitutional amendments, according to which, the king now has to consult the heads of the elected parliament and the appointed Consultative Council, which was introduced in 2002, before dissolving the government.Bahraini opposition groups, however, have censured the recent amendments, saying they were intended by King Hamad to control the parliament.Abdul Jalil Khalil, a senior member of the main opposition group, al-Wefaq, said after the amendments were ratified that the Bahraini opposition wants “a single-chamber parliament that is elected, just as the constitution of 1973 stipulated. These amendments do not abolish the Consultative Council.” /129