Riot police in Bahrain fired tear gas and stun grenades Thursday to disperse thousands of opposition supporters gathered near the square that was the epicenter of the nation's Shiite-led demonstrations earlier this year, an activist said.
The violence is a setback to efforts by the tiny island's Sunni rulers trying to open reconciliation talks with the Shiite opposition in the Gulf kingdom.
Activist Nabeel Rajab said the protesters at Manama's Pearl Square chanted: "Down, down Hamad" – a reference to the Bahraini monarch. They also demanded that all demonstrators, opposition leaders and activists, detained during the deadly crackdown on the Shiite-led campaign for political freedom and greater rights, be released.
No injuries were immediately reported during Thursday's demonstration.
The violence came a day after Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa announced the creation of an independent commission that will investigate allegations that protesters' rights were violated during the anti-government demonstrations that erupted in February.
The announcement was an apparent effort by the Sunni monarch to draw opposition groups into the government-sponsored talks, set to begin on Saturday.
Washington has encouraged dialogue in the island nation, home to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, and had urged the monarchy to meet some of the opposition's demands.
But the king's appeal for dialogue got a cool reception from opposition groups. The leaders of the biggest Shiite party, Al Wefaq, have not yet decided whether they will join the talks.
Reports by Bahrain's rights groups that another protester died on Thursday as a result of injuries he sustained during the unrest could further erode Wefaq's appetite for reconciliation talks with the monarchy.