Bahrain bombing policemen killed
Police officers stand guard at one of the main entrances of Bahrain Sunni Grand Mosque where joint Sunni and Shi'ite Friday prayers were held to show solidarity and co-existence between the two sects of Islam Reuters

A bomb attack in Bahrain's mainly Shi'ite village of Sitra, south of the capital Manama, has killed two policemen and wounded 8 others. The country's Interior Ministry said in Arabic on Twitter that the blast was a "terrorist attack" but did not specify which group was responsible. Then, it posted a statement in English:

Sectarian tensions have increased in Sunni-ruled Gulf countries after Islamic State (Isis) militants claimed responsibility for three bombings of Shi'ite mosques in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. After the crackdown on the pro-democracy uprising in 2011, led by Saudi forces, Bahrain has plunged deeper into sectarian conflict between the wealthy ruling Sunni-al-Khalifa minority and the Shia majority.

King Sheikh Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa has pledged to implement recommendations by an independent commission of inquiry but reforms are progressing slowly and reconciliation talks have stalled. Violence between riot police and protesters is a weekly occurrence. Recently, Bahrain's human rights activist Nabeel Rajab, who had been jailed on charges of publicly "insulting a public institution" on Twitter, was granted a royal pardon for health reasons and freed.

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