Bahraini police fired tear gas on protesters demanding the release of former Member of Parliament.

Bahraini police fired tear gas on protesters demanding the release of former Member of Parliament.

Witnesses said protesters on Thursday night took to the streets of Manama and nearby villages, chanting slogans demanding the release of political prisoners and the fall of the ruling Sunni monarchy.

Police fired tear gas to disperse the demonstrators calling for the release of ex-MP Khalil Marzooq.

The opposition in the Gulf kingdom has called for protests on Friday to condemn the arrest of Marzooq on charges of inciting terrorism.

For its part, interior ministry said: "Police were the target of a terrorist act of Molotov cocktails being thrown and partly setting on fire a vehicle of law enforcement officers in Shaharkhan village" west of Manama.

Opposition groups have suspended their participation in national reconciliation talks aimed at ending Bahrain's political impasse following Tuesday's arrest.

Marzooq was deputy speaker in Bahrain's 40-member parliament before 18 MPs from his Al-Wefaq movement walked out in February 2011 in protest at violence against demonstrators.

In March 2011, security forces crushed a month of protests demanding democratic reforms.
Dozens of peaceful protesters have been killed since the Arab Spring-inspired pro-democracy protests erupted, according to the International Federation for Human Rights.