Bahrain was determined to go about its daily business yesterday (February 12), despite rioters' attempts to block roads and attack police in the run-up to the fourth anniversary of 2011's unrest.

Shops and restaurants remained open for business along the Budaiya Highway, which has been known as a flashpoint of protests in recent years, while public buses, shopping malls and hypermarkets continued to function as normal, said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication.

Yet there were reports of attacks on government schools in Sitra, Nuwaidrat, Nabi Saleh and Salmabad, and the GDN witnessed tyres and rubbish bins being set ablaze at the entrance to various villages.

Cinder blocks, old furniture and the remains of uprooted date palms were spread across roads in Daih, Duraz, Bilad Al Qadeem, Karzakan, Sehla and Sanabis, while a cement truck was forced to stop in Jidhafs and empty its load.

A car was also torched in Naim near the Tylos Hotel at around 7.30am, although no injuries were reported.

But undaunted by such attempts to spread chaos, many citizens and residents persisted and found their way to work.

"No-one can stop me from going to work, I have my right to move in this country and these people think by doing all this they will achieve something," said 39-year-old Duraz resident, Bahraini Hussain Abbas, whose car was damaged by iron spikes hammered into the road.

"I have had to pay BD70 to ($184) change two tyres that were damaged because of these people - it's the common man who is badly affected and cannot reach home on time or get his children to school."

Meanwhile, a Filipino bakery worker on the Budaiya Highway said all staff had made it to work despite illegal road blocks.

"We see action almost on a daily basis here, so it does not bother us as we have a job to do," he said.

However, some shops were closed in villages in anticipation of rioting, and traders at Jidhafs vegetable market were forced to shut shop earlier than usual because of the disturbances.

The violence coincided with the start of a three-day strike called for by radical opposition groups, who have urged supporters to boycott shopping malls and other monetary transactions until tomorrow in an effort to cripple the economy.

Sources said security guards at some schools were threatened, students and teachers were intimidated and as many as 410 attacks have occurred so far.

A suspicious device was also placed at the entrance of Sitra, causing long tailbacks as police cordoned off the area to defuse the situation.

A highly visible heavy police presence was also seen at key junctions and highways with armoured vehicles, K-9 units and fire engines present.

Throughout the day, Al Wefaq National Islamic Society posted pictures of the illegal protests plaguing Bahrain, seeking to glorify rioters' attempts at disruption and destruction. - TradeArabia News Service