Al-Wassat, the licensed daily to be issued within two weeks in Bahrain

The Bahraini daily al-Wasat on December 22 was licensed by the Bahraini ministry of labor and thereby it has become the second daily which is officially licensed in Bahrain within two weeks.

Mansour al-Jomari, a former opposition who recently returned back to Bahrain and will be the paper's chief editor said that al-Wassat got the initial consent from the ministry. He said that the paper's paid capital is two million Bahraini dinars and the licensed capital is five million bahraini dinars.

Al-Jomari added al-Wassat will be a pan, independent political daily, representing all strata, communities and intellectual trends in the Bahraini society.

Just two weeks before the Bahraini ministry of information licensed a daily called al-Meithaq ( the Code). It will be issued during the first half of 2002.

To this effect the Bahraini minister of information Nabil Yaqoub al-Homor said that the ministry still studies several applications to found new publication houses and licenses will be given whenever set conditions to this effect are met.

Worthy mentioning that in Bahrain of 660,000 citizens, 36% are foreigners, there is 4 dailies two are in Arabic, " Akhbar al-Khaleij " ( Gulf News) which was established in 1976. From the same house an English daily " The Gulf Daily News" and al-Ayam ( the days), which was established in 1989 also released by the same press house. The English daily "Bahrain's Tribune " is also published in Bahrain.