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By Simeon Kerr in Sohar, Oman
Published: February 28 2011 10:32 | Last updated: February 28 2011 19:16
Thousands of Omani protesters confronted police in the industrial port of Sohar on Sunday after witnesses reported that two protesters had been killed in clashes with security forces.
The small Gulf state, a close ally of the UK, is the latest country to be rocked by the wave of youth-driven democracy movements that have spread through the region since the fall of the Tunisian and Egyptian leaders.
Sultan Qaboos bin Said al-Said, Oman’s ruler, reshuffled the cabinet at the weekend. But this failed to placate protesters in central Sohar. “We want all these ministers to go,” said one demonstrator. “They are thieves.”
The protesters, who had gathered at a central Sohar roundabout on Saturday to demand better economic prospects, say police broke up the demonstration in the middle of the night, arresting more than 45 people.
Clashes broke out on Sunday morning as thousands of masked youths returned to bolster the numbers on the roundabout.
As dusk was falling, police fired teargas, dispersing hundreds of youths who were approaching the gates of the central police station from the roundabout.
“This is our Pearl,” said one protester, referring to Pearl Square in Manama, the focal point for democracy protests in Bahrain. Youths from neighbouring towns have arrived in Sohar to join the protests.
Smaller demonstrations have been staged in other parts of Oman, including the capital Muscat, but none has erupted into violence.
Witnesses said anger at the deaths of two demonstrators could see the unrest swell. “We will go and get our guns now,” said one.
Oman has only modest oil and gas reserves, but its industrial and services economy has survived the financial crisis better than some of its neighbours.
However, dissatisfaction persists. “There is no work, and even those with jobs have salaries that aren’t enough,” said Mohammed Said, one of the protesters.
“We just need jobs,” said Saeed al-Baloushi, a resident of Sohar who, in the absence of work at home, has for the past three years been a policeman in neighbouring Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates.
Police cars were stationed at key roundabouts in the city on Monday and some main roads were closed.
Three burnt-out vehicles could be seen near the protesters, some of whom threw stones and Molotov cocktails at police, according to witnesses.
The demonstrators also set up barricades on the roads near the roundabout, which one said they had renamed “Reform Square”
The small Gulf state, a close ally of the UK, is the latest country to be rocked by the wave of youth-driven democracy movements that have spread through the region since the fall of the Tunisian and Egyptian leaders.
The flare-up follows rising tensions in Bahrain, where pro-democracy protests have shaken the country for the past two weeks, prompting states such as Saudi Arabia to offer citizens billions of dollars’ worth of benefits in an attempt to ward off unrest.
Sultan Qaboos bin Said al-Said, Oman’s ruler, reshuffled the cabinet at the weekend. But this failed to placate protesters in central Sohar. “We want all these ministers to go,” said one demonstrator. “They are thieves.”
The protesters, who had gathered at a central Sohar roundabout on Saturday to demand better economic prospects, say police broke up the demonstration in the middle of the night, arresting more than 45 people.
Clashes broke out on Sunday morning as thousands of masked youths returned to bolster the numbers on the roundabout.
As dusk was falling, police fired teargas, dispersing hundreds of youths who were approaching the gates of the central police station from the roundabout.
“This is our Pearl,” said one protester, referring to Pearl Square in Manama, the focal point for democracy protests in Bahrain. Youths from neighbouring towns have arrived in Sohar to join the protests.
Smaller demonstrations have been staged in other parts of Oman, including the capital Muscat, but none has erupted into violence.
Witnesses said anger at the deaths of two demonstrators could see the unrest swell. “We will go and get our guns now,” said one.
Oman has only modest oil and gas reserves, but its industrial and services economy has survived the financial crisis better than some of its neighbours.
However, dissatisfaction persists. “There is no work, and even those with jobs have salaries that aren’t enough,” said Mohammed Said, one of the protesters.
“We just need jobs,” said Saeed al-Baloushi, a resident of Sohar who, in the absence of work at home, has for the past three years been a policeman in neighbouring Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates.
Police cars were stationed at key roundabouts in the city on Monday and some main roads were closed.
Three burnt-out vehicles could be seen near the protesters, some of whom threw stones and Molotov cocktails at police, according to witnesses.
The demonstrators also set up barricades on the roads near the roundabout, which one said they had renamed “Reform Square”
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