Clashes mark Bahrain’s second uprising anniversary

MANAMA, Bahrain: Anti-government protesters in Bahrain have set up roadblocks and clashed with security forces amid high tensions on the second anniversary of the uprising in the Gulf nation.

The demonstrators on Thursday included groups chanting against talks aimed at easing the Arab Spring-inspired unrest in the country.

Bahrain’s Shiite majority is seeking a greater political voice in the strategic Sunni-ruled kingdom, which is home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet.

Street battles broke out before dawn in some Shiite neighborhoods, but opposition groups also have called for a nationwide strike to mark the anniversary.

More than 55 people have been killed in the two-year unrest. Some activists place the death toll higher.