Bahrain's king declares 3-month state of emergency

MANAMA, Bahrain (AP) — Bahrain's king imposed a three-month state of emergency Tuesday and gave the country's military chief wide authority to battle a pro-democracy uprising that has threatened the ruling monarchy and drawn in forces from around the Gulf.

The martial law-style order — read on Bahrain state TV — comes a day after more than 1,000 Saudi-led troops arrived to help prop up the U.S.-backed regime in the first major cross-border action against the revolts that have erupted across the Arab world.

A security official in Saudi Arabia said a Saudi sergeant was shot and killed by a protester on Tuesday in Bahrain's capital, Manama. No other details were immediately given on the death of the soldier, identified as Sgt. Ahmed al-Raddadi.

But, if true, it would mark a dramatic shift in the tactics by the opposition, which has displayed no weapons and has adopted the chant of "peaceful" as a main slogan. The Saudi official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media.

The dispatch of troops from Gulf allies on Monday highlighted the regional worries about possible spillover from Bahrain, where members of a majority Shiite population have led a month of relentless protests against the Western-backed Sunni dynasty to try to break its monopoly on power.

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