Car blast hits Bahrain ahead of F1: police
A car blast hits Bahrain just days ahead of the country's Formula One Grand Prix.
DUBAI (AFP) - A Bahraini youth opposition group on Monday said it blew up a car in Manama overnight in an incident the authorities blamed on a "terrorist group" just days ahead of the country s Formula One Grand Prix.
There were no casualties in the blast and no damage other than to the car, police said in a statement.
"A terrorist group used a gas cylinder to burn a car in Manama at night on Sunday causing an explosion," the statement said.
The radical youth movement February 14 claimed responsibility in a statement on its Twitter account, saying the aim was to disrupt "activity in Manama s financial centre in opposition to holding the Formula One race" next Sunday.
Security services are investigating the attack aimed at "attracting the attention of the media" before the controversial race, official BNA news agency quoted a government official as saying.
Police and protesters chanting "No, no to F1" clashed in Shiite villages around Manama late on Monday, witnesses said.
Roads were blocked by burning tyres and police fired tear gas and sound bombs at demonstrators.
The blast came as police also fired tear gas and sound bombs to disperse protesters in several Shiite villages. No casualties were reported.
The main Shiite opposition bloc Al-Wefaq condemned Sunday s attack "regardless of the party which carried it out."
It reaffirmed its "commitment to peaceful action as a strategic choice" and urged a "probe into the incident by an independent commission."
Sunni-ruled Bahrain has vowed to take "appropriate" security measures ahead of the April 19-21 Grand Prix, as Shiite demonstrators stage daily protests.
Under the banner "Democracy is our right," the mainly Shiite opposition is holding a week of protests that began on Friday to coincide with the lead-up to the race.
Al-Wefaq said on Sunday that 98 people have been arrested and 31 injured in clashes with police so far this month.
