page_title: March of loyalty to martyrs
section_title: Loyalty to Martyrs
hierarchical_section_title: March of loyalty to martyrs / Loyalty to Martyrs
caption_attribution_description: English: Panoramic image for march of loyalty to Martyrs
context_page_description: The March of loyalty to martyrs was a protest on 22 February 2011 in Manama, Bahrain. Tens of thousands participated in the protest, one of the largest in the Bahraini uprising. Named after the seven victims killed by police and army forces during previous protests, the march filled the space between Bahrain mall and Pearl Roundabout. Protesters carried Bahrain's flag and demanded the fall of the government, implementation of a constitutional monarchy and other reforms, with some of them also demanding the end of the regime.
  The march was named the largest in the country's history by organizers; sources estimated that over 100,000 protesters participated, although other sources gave higher and lower estimations. A number of ambulance drivers, police and army officers joined the protest. Security forces were not present and unlike previous protests, it ended peacefully.
context_section_description: In the afternoon of 22 February tens of thousands of children, men and women occupied and marched on the main streets of Manama. The march was called "The march of loyalty to martyrs" in reference to those killed in previous protests. It stretched for several miles, filling the eastern side of Sheik Khalifa bin Salman Highway from Bahrain Mall to Pearl Roundabout located in Manama's business district.
  The protesters, while carrying the white-and-red flag of Bahrain and posters of the seven victims, chanted: "Ash-shab yurid isqat an-nizam" ("the people want to bring down the regime"), "Egypt, Tunisia, are we any different?" and "No Shia, No Sunni, only Bahraini". Most demanded the fall of the Bahrain government. "Some want the family out but most only the prime minister", said a protester interviewed by BBC. The march was led by ambulance drivers who reported being attacked by security forces while trying to help treat protesters from the Pearl Roundabout injured on 17 February, which came to be called Bloody Thursday.
  Protest organizers, which consisted of a loose coalition of seven political parties including Al Wefaq and Wa'ad, named the march the largest in Bahrain's history. Associated Press, The Huffington Post, The New York Times and Voice of America estimated that there were over 100,000 participants. The New York Times described the number as "astonishing", because Bahraini citizens total number was a little over 500,000. The BBC described the course of march as a "sea of red and white flags". Other estimates varied between 30,000 and 200,000 participants. In their documentary film Bahrain: Shouting in the Dark, Al Jazeera English stated, "Bahrain held its largest march in history; the world media recorded nearly a quarter of all citizens in the streets". The BICI report mentioned that "by many accounts more than 100,000 people were marching" and that the number of protesters at Pearl Roundabout peaked at over 150,000. IFEX estimated the number to be as high as 200,000; however, CNN Arabic said the number was just about 30,000.
  Security forces did not intervene to disperse the march, however a state-owned helicopter hovered overhead. A small number of police and army officers participated in the protest. Denouncing army troops who opened fire on protesters, an officer said, "What we did to the people was not heroic. We ask the people to forgive us, we ask the people for forgiveness". Another officer added, "The weapons that have been used against the people are weapons of shame, these weapons should be used to protect the people, and not be used against them. That’s why we've decided to be with the people".
  The widow of one of the seven "martyrs" read a statement after the march that listed the opposition's demands; the most important demands were the resignation of the forty-year-long government headed by the king's uncle and the implementation of a constitutional monarchy. Other demands included the immediate commencement of an "impartial" investigation into the deaths, the neutralization of the state media and the release of the remaining "political" prisoners. Analysts stated that the large size of the protest pressured the government to concede to the protesters' demands. Al Jazeera English said that "unless they offered deep reforms, the Khalifas will likely fall".
caption: Panoramic image of the protest.
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