Independence and Struggles

During the late 1940's and the 1950's many Bahrainis demanded more participation in the government and a more equal distribution of the resources and wealth of the country. After widespread rioting in 1956, the government granted some minor political reforms. Continued antigovernment riots during the 1960's led the ruling emir, Sheikh Isa-bin Salman al-Khalifa, to turn over some of his power to a twelve-member council of state, later called the cabinet, in 1970.

In 1971 Britain withdrew from the Persian Gulf, and Bahrain made plans to enter a federation with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. However, because of a territorial dispute with Qatar over the Hawar group of islands located between Bahrain and Qatar, as well as other difficulties, Bahrain changed course, declaring itself a fully independent nation on August 15, 1971.

In 1973 Bahrain adopted a constitution that protected individual liberties and created an experimental national assembly (parliament) made up of representatives elected by the people. However, Sheikh Isa-bin Salman al-Khalifa disbanded the national assembly in 1975. Although a petition and other ongoing forms of protest since 1975 have called for the reintroduction of representative institutions, particularly the national assembly, the emir has refused.

Since the Iranian Islamic Revolution in 1979, there has been periodic unrest among Bahrain's Shiite majority, and during the 1980's Iran revived its long-standing claim to Bahrain. In 1981 Bahrain became a founding member of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and joined other states of eastern Ara-

Bia to work together on defensive and economic strategies. In particular, the GCC cooperated to protect its members and resist any advances by either Iraq or Iran during the 1980-1988 war between Iraq and Iran. During the early to mid-1980's Bahrain reportedly foiled numerous Iranian attempts to foment revolution in Bahrain.

On August 2,1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait, and in 1991, Bahrain allowed the United States and Britain to use its territory to launch air and naval attacks against Iraqi forces. As part of the GCC, Bahraini pilots flew strikes into Iraq, bombing Iraqi military targets, and Bahraini soldiers participated in the ground offensive that liberated Kuwait in February, 1991. During the 1990's Bahrain's relations with both Iran and Iraq improved.