4. Bahrain
Following the 2011 protests against the Sunni minority government, Bahrain has seen periodical clashes between the government force and pro-democracy protestors. The crackdown against the opposition has been increasing lately, with leading opposition party National Democratic Action Society banned in 2016, which led to another protest, which was put down by force. The NDAS was banned under terrorism charges, which is the regime’s favorite tool of repression, despite the fact that NDAS was mostly a secular organization. The suppression of freedom of assembly and association has resulted in increased unrest among the majority of Shia population.
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