Bahraini opposition groups have agreed to attend the government-initiated talks aimed at ending two years of anti-regime protests in the Persian Gulf state.
More than two dozen government representatives and eight opposition members are holding talks behind closed doors in Manama. Bahrain’s main opposition bloc al-Wefaq is also taking part in the talks.
The opposition says they have raised nine points for the government to respond to and based on the response, they will decide whether or not to continue negotiations.
The opposition had earlier said an agreement on the mechanism of the talks should be reached in advance and the results of the talks be put to a referendum and not be submitted to King Hamad for approval.
It is the second government-initiated reconciliation talks since the beginning of anti-regime protests in Bahrain in early 2011. The first round of talks, which were held in July 2011, collapsed after the opposition walked away from the talks, saying they were not carried out fairly.
The new round of talks come as Bahrainis have been holding protest rallies across the country for more than a week ahead of the anniversary.