Formula One in Bahrain amid widespread unrest

Bahrain's Crown Prince rejected calls from human rights activists to cancel this weekend's Grand Prix as pro-democracy opposition groups threatened further protests after days of clashes with security forces. As Formula One cars took to the Sakhir circuit for practice, Crown Prince Salman said that calling off the race on Sunday would play into the hands of "extremists".
Speaking to the media alongside Formula One chief Bernie Ecclestone and in front of TV crews broadcasting live around the world, Salman said: "I think cancelling the race just empowers extremists." The government aims to use the Grand Prix as a way of showing that life is back to normal after democracy groups launched an Arab Spring-inspired uprising last year. The protests were initially crushed, but were not stamped out, and demonstrations and clashes are frequent.
Human rights organisations and anti-government groups have argued that the race should not be held while what they describe as political repression and rights abuses are taking place in Bahrain. "For those of us trying to navigate a way out of this political problem, having the race allows us to build bridges across communities, to get people working together. It allows us to celebrate our nation. It is an idea that is positive, not one that is divisive," the crown prince said.
The prince was speaking after two of the 12 teams said their staff had been caught up in incident where protesters threw petrol bombs on their way back from the track to hotels in Manama. The Force India team missed Friday's second practice for safety reasons to make sure staff could get back to their hotels safely before nightfall.
On the eve of Friday's practice session, protests had flared in villages surrounding the capital, Manama, away from the race circuit. Police fired tear gas and stun grenades to disperse demonstrators in clashes that have been building in the week leading to Sunday's round of the World Championship. Bahrain has been in turmoil since a democracy movement erupted last year following uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia. Protests were initially crushed with the loss of dozens of lives, but youths still clash daily with riot police in Shia Muslim districts, and thousands take part in opposition rallies.
Bahrain's ruling al-Khalifa family, a Sunni Muslim dynasty ruling a majority Shi'ite population caught between neighbours Saudi Arabia and Iran with opposite sympathies in its internal strife, hopes the race will offer an opportunity to tell the world that life is returning to normal. Unrest forced the cancellation of last year's Grand Prix, and the 2012 race has been in doubt as Bahrain's human rights record has come under fire from abroad.
The Sauber team also said it encountered youths with petrol bombs in Thursday's drive home. Only small crowds were seen in the grandstand on Friday for an event that has cost Bahrain an estimated $40 million to stage. The Grand Prix drew 100,000 visitors to the nation of just 1.3 million and generated half a billion dollars in spending when it was last held two years ago. Manama is under tight security, with dozens of armoured vehicles stationed around the capital and the road to the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir. Activists say barbed wire has installed near some parts of the main highway.