Mahmood's Den » bandargate

Civil War is in the offing

mahmood — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 06:11:18 +0000

If you’re not afraid of what and where Bahrain is going, then this clip should give you a good indication. In it, a bunch of ignoramuses are taking the mic in front of a government building in Muharraq inciting not only hatred, but openly calling for the killing of the Shia in Bahrain, and threatening [...]

Opposition’s Conditions for National Dialogue

mahmood — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 16:57:23 +0000

Here’s a list I received detailing the opposition’s requirements to enter the national dialogue called for by the Crown Prince. I cannot vouch for them as I cannot get independent confirmation, but they look genuine and represent them here for their informational value, and hope that we can start this dialogue here too: أهداف ثورة [...]

“It’s a snafu, honest!”

mahmood — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 12:00:14 +0000

BAHRAINI authorities yesterday claimed to have blocked a number of websites and blogs by mistake. The Information Affairs Authority (IAA) claimed a technical error resulted in blocking of several sites, but said in a statement it was fixing the problem. [...] She said her site www.sillybahrainigirl.blogspot.com was blocked on Tuesday after being incorrectly categorised as [...]

“Cleaner than a white dress”

mahmood — Fri, 09 May 2008 03:34:28 +0000

Is a bastardisation of the translation of an Arabic idiom which is better transcribed in English as “Cleaner than a white thobe” at least – thobe being the Arabian traditional male garment – which might have taken away the derogatory insinuation given by the use of the word “dress”. This Arabic proverb is akin to [...]

Shamlawi contesting electoral districts

mahmood — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:39:52 +0000

One of the main grievances people of Bahrain have is the iniquitous distribution of the electoral districts. We find that in the 2006 elections for instance, the Northern Governate contains a total of 91,874 voters electing nine members of parliament; while in the Southern Governate, the voters there number only 16,571 but they get to [...]

Kneejerk Reactions

mahmood — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 07:29:36 +0000

Divine intervention couldn’t have come at a more fortuitous time for the government to start to re-impose another heinous State Security Law, the very one which Bahrain suffered from for 30 years and was the main cause of the dissolution of the 1973 parliament and suspending parliamentary life in this country until it was rescinded [...]

More bad news.. this time from the Economist

mahmood — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 15:39:30 +0000

Skepticism is the feeling du jour as far as reporting about Bahrain is concerned, it seems. Here’s how the Economist covered it: Wefaq must now deal with one of the trickiest sectarian issues raised by its supporters: a widespread rumour that the government is handing out passports to Sunnis from other countries in an attempt [...]

MtvSM time

mahmood — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 08:57:21 +0000

It’s that time again.. I’m in the airport awaiting my flight to Jordan and it suddenly hit me that I didn’t announce the traditional Mahmood’s Den Scapegoat of the Moment! Silly me. Alrighty then… I don’t think there is anything nor anyone more deserving of very valid blame other than… The Parliament! If I were [...]

Will it explode?

mahmood — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 08:17:33 +0000

If you’re in Bahrain, you must have felt the tension over the past few months. This tension could in large part be attributed to the Bandargate scandal in which some members of the government and royal family have been implicated in disseminating sectarian strife; a conspiracy which has kept the Bahraini political and apolitical scenes [...]

Change at the GDN?

mahmood — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 12:50:51 +0000

You know how much I love the GDN, right? And hold it at the highest regards? Yes, I’m being sarcastic here, but even with that, I am really surprised by a few changes in their reportage I have witnessed over the last few weeks; one might even use the adjective “daring” to describe some of [...]