British, Japanese journalists held in Bahrain

Moscow, April 23 (IANS/RIA Novosti) A British TV crew and two Japanese journalists were detained by the Bahraini police Sunday.

"We can confirm that our foreign affairs correspondent Jonathan Miller and his team have been arrested whilst reporting for the programme from a village in Bahrain," the Channel 4 said. "Our primary concern is for the safety of the team, and we are working with the appropriate authorities to secure a swift release."

The team failed to obtain journalist visas and worked without official accreditation to cover the Bahrain Grand Prix and civil unrest, the channel said.

Bahraini opposition activist Mohammed Al-Maskati told RIA Novosti that police also arrested two Japanese journalists who covered protests on a highway leading to the Bahrain International Circuit, where a Formula 1 Grand Prix took place Sunday.

Meanwhile, the country's state-run BNA news agency said King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa received congratulations from the country's government and parliament "on the occasion of a successful Grand Prix" Sunday.

Protests are still underway near the capital Manama, with protestors demanding "true" reforms, government's resignation and the release of political prisoners.

--IANS/RIA Novosti

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