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policy goals was the ‘support of revolutionary movements in other Arab

countries’. The American historian of Palestinian origin, Rosemarie Said Zahlan,
82

confirmed the influence of Nasser via the utilisation of various media channels and

especially the radio in Bahrain saying:

His call for the loosening of imperial control throughout the Arab
world struck a resonant note in Bahrain where thousands listened
regularly to Sawt al Arab [Voice of the Arabs], the Egyptian radio
station.
83

Further, Nasser’s portraits were commonly seen in Bahrain and the Gulf, ‘hung for

years on almost every commoner’s wall, side by side – whether for reasons of

loyalty or of discretion – with that of the local ruler’, Glen Balfour-Paul, former

British diplomat and historian noted. As no further details as to the relationship
84

between the two sides was provided, this thesis aims to explore the nature of the

ties between the two.

Rashid Al-Zayani, a Bahraini historian and businessman, in his short analysis

of the Movement, raised a number of unanswered questions. He viewed British

policy towards the Movement to be unclear and asked, ‘were they really behind

agitating the Committee? Or were they against the Adviser, Belgrave? Or with

him?’ This raises the need to examine British policy in Bahrain and its stance
85
towards Belgrave, the Movement, and general reform – a much-neglected topic in

published work on this era.

82 M. Khadduri, Political Trends in the Arab World: The Role of Ideas and Ideals in Politics (Baltimore,
MD: 1970), 168.
83 R.S. Zahlan, The Making of the Modern Gulf States (Reading: 2002), 67.
84 G. Balfour-Paul, The End of Empire in the Middle East: Britain’s Relinquishment of Power in Her last
three Arab Dependencies (Cambridge: 1991), 149.
85 R. Al-Zayani, Al-Bahrain baynah Ahdyan: Al-Himayah wa Al-Istiqlal [Bahrain between Two Eras: The
Protectorate and Independence] (Manama: 2002), 347.

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