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May 2nd, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda Press TV has interviewed Hisham Jaber, Director, the Center of Middle East Studies in Beirut about the question of reform in Bahrain and ways to a peaceful solution to the fourteen month old crisis. What follows is an approximate transcript of the interview.
Press TV: Mr. Jaber, what I want to ask you now is what would have happened in Bahrain if there wasn’t support, at least complicit support, for the Bahraini regime by its allies like Saudi Arabia and by the United States? Would that have changed the situation in Bahrain?
Jaber: It’s clear the international community, so called international community , is largely made up of the Western countries allied to the US and they have Arab countries also who relate to the US.
Bahrain is different, everybody knows that. Bahrain is a platform, a military platform to the US; very important as a military base that hosts the American Navy.
And secondly, Bahrain is the main gate to Saudi Arabia. Any democracy, which may happen or reform or freedom in Bahrain that may happen is considered as a virus or a germ that would be contagious to Saudi Arabia. And I don’t think they would be happy to see reform.
Even if the king wanted to make reform in Bahrain, he is under the pressure of first Saudi Arabia and second, of the US – before the Americans can be sure that their interests would be protected in Bahrain if the reform may happen.
But I think the Americans will continue supporting the regime without supporting democracy. They have a slogan of democracy and freedom and equality etc etc. At the end of the day the Americans will not win and they will lose their interests.
I think for the Americans it is time now to support or at least to be neutral. The protests in Bahrain have already been going on for 14 months. These have been peaceful protests; they did not use any weapons and did not cause any harm against the infrastructure or against the government.
The opposite for them has happened – they have had a lot of victims, the regime promised them reform, but I think there is another wing on the regime, which is the prime minister…
Press TV: Why is the Bahraini regime not for dialogue when the political observers are saying, when the protesters are saying and everyone that we are hearing are saying that this violence and this crackdown is working against the existence of the regime itself?
Jaber: Yes, I am confident that King Hamid al-Khalifa wants the reform, but he is under pressure from three sides. Firstly from Saudi Arabia as I told you they don’t want any reform; any democracy in Bahrain because it is not convenient for them and it will move this democracy or request for democracy for equality to Saudi Arabia and especially to the eastern region.
Secondly, The Americans are not sure that giving democracy to the people of Bahrain will ensure or will protect their own interests because they are using Bahrain, as we said, as an American base, a military base, as a military platform and it’s very important strategically for their operations everywhere; and especially to be near Iran and also their intervention in Afghanistan. In that area Bahrain at the center is very important.
Press TV: Are you saying that these allies believe that a violent crackdown is the only solution and is actually going to quell these protests and is actually going to bring calm to the crisis in Bahrain – Is that what they believe?
Jaber: No I said that the Americans are not sure – they have the slogan for democracy, but they are not sure… that if they give democracy to Bahrain that the government i.e. the new government of Bahrain through democracy may ask them to minimize their presence in that area.
The Americans are accusing the protesters of being politically pro-Iran. The question is if Iran is supporting those protesters at least should or could give them weapons for example. Iran is not interfering at all in the problem in Bahrain.
Even Iran has the right to be concerned about what is going on in Bahrain. The revolution in Bahrain, the protests in Bahrain is peaceful so far. We are not sure it will stay like this.
The people in Bahrain for one year they were asking for reform under the ceiling of the kingdom and I’m not sure now if they will accept this. Now we start to hear voices that they want to change the whole regime after fourteen months of the revolution. And this revolution or these protests still so far are peaceful.
I think the best solution for Bahrain is for the king to make a very brave initiative, for example, to move for dialogue and listen to the people and try to convince his neighbors, Saudi Arabia for example and other Persian Gulf countries and to tell the US that only a peaceful solution and the giving of democracy and dialogue will solve the problem in Bahrain, not force.
SC/JR
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