Thousands of Shiite Muslims turned out peacefully Friday to call for political reforms in Bahrain, as practice began for this year's grand prix in the Sunni-ruled Gulf kingdom. Demonstrations have been held during the event every year since 2011 by opponents of the ruling Al-Khalifa dynasty in an attempt to highlight the reform demands. The influential Shiite opposition bloc Al-Wefaq had called for a rally Friday on the main Budaya highway, four kilometres (2.5 miles) west of Manama, which links several Shiite villages. Al-Wefaq leader Sheikh Ali Salman had urged supporters to protest "peacefully... and exploit the presence of (foreign) media attending the F1... so the world could...
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