<p>Police arrived early morning Wednesday with tanks and tried to expel demonstrators, mainly Shia Muslims, who have camped out in Manama's Pearl Square for a month to press for political reforms.</p>.<p>State-run BNA news agency said that all rioters have withdrawn from the square without any direct clashes with the police force. <br /><br />Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa Tuesday declared the state of emergency for three months to deal with the unrest which swept the country soon after a wave of protests toppled long-term regimes in Tunisia and Egypt, triggering similar uprisings in several countries of north Africa and Middle East.<br /><br />The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) troops, most of them from Saudi Arabia, arrived in Bahrain Monday to help authorities maintain order and protect strategic facilities, including oil resources.<br /><br />Bahrain, home to the US Navy's 5th Fleet, is ruled by the Sunni Muslim royal family, while the majority Shia population say they face discrimination in jobs and other services. <br /><br />King Hamad has been in power since 2002 when the country was turned into a constitutional monarchy, paving the way for an elected parliament. But the king has been the supreme authority of Bahrain since 1971.</p>
<p>Police arrived early morning Wednesday with tanks and tried to expel demonstrators, mainly Shia Muslims, who have camped out in Manama's Pearl Square for a month to press for political reforms.</p>.<p>State-run BNA news agency said that all rioters have withdrawn from the square without any direct clashes with the police force. <br /><br />Bahraini King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa Tuesday declared the state of emergency for three months to deal with the unrest which swept the country soon after a wave of protests toppled long-term regimes in Tunisia and Egypt, triggering similar uprisings in several countries of north Africa and Middle East.<br /><br />The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) troops, most of them from Saudi Arabia, arrived in Bahrain Monday to help authorities maintain order and protect strategic facilities, including oil resources.<br /><br />Bahrain, home to the US Navy's 5th Fleet, is ruled by the Sunni Muslim royal family, while the majority Shia population say they face discrimination in jobs and other services. <br /><br />King Hamad has been in power since 2002 when the country was turned into a constitutional monarchy, paving the way for an elected parliament. But the king has been the supreme authority of Bahrain since 1971.</p>