Bahrainis march through their capital Manama Friday Janury 3, calling on their government to expel U.S. forces from the kingdom

WASHINGTON, January 16 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) – As the military buildup in the Gulf mounts up in preparation for a looming U.S.-led war on Iraq, Washington urged its citizens in the Gulf on Thursday, January 16, to steer clear of large areas in the Bahraini capital where anti-war demonstrations are expected to be staged this week.

In a notice to the American nationals in Bahrain, the U.S. embassy in Manama said it believed a "potentially large pro-Iraq demonstration" is to be staged at the Ras Roman mosque in the diplomatic area of the capital on Friday, January 17, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).

"It is anticipated that the participants will march from the mosque to the United Nations building in Hoora," the embassy said in the notice.

"The exact time of the demonstration is not known, so American citizens are advised to avoid the area all afternoon on Friday," it said, recalling an existing global alert that urges U.S. nationals to be on alert due to the heightened risk of attacks around the world.

Bahrain, a major non-NATO ally of Washington and host of the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet as well as thousands of U.S. military personnel, has been the site of several anti-war, pro-Iraq and pro-Palestinian demonstrations in recent weeks.

Last March, Bahrainis staged a series of demonstrations against Israel and Washington's support for the Jewish state after Israeli forces launched a large-scale military offensive in the West Bank.

And on April 5, 2002, a man died and more than 100 people were injured during a demonstration in which some 20,000 mostly Bahraini protesters took part and during which stones and petrol bombs were lobbed at the U.S. embassy in Manama.

On the official front, the relations between Baghdad and Manama has witnessed diplomatic development.

Bahrain announced last April that it would reopen its embassy in Baghdad after a 10-year break, strictly on “humanitarian grounds”, to be the third Gulf Arab state to have a diplomat posted in Baghdad.

Qatar also renewed ties following the 1991 Gulf War which liberated Kuwait, while Oman maintained relations even during the crisis.

As U.S. 5th Fleet, whose carrier-based warplanes patrol the skies of southern Iraq, has its headquarters in Bahrain, doubts are raised that the small Arab Gulf state can be a launch pad for any potential military offensive on Iraq.

Calls to expel the fleet are often heard at protests in Bahrain, the BBC News Online has quoted correspondents as saying, in reference to a Pro-Palestinian demonstration on December during which protesters trampled and burned U.S. and Israeli flags.

Several thousand people took part in the demonstration during which protesters chanted "Death to America" and "Down, Down USA".

The U.S. has been reinforcing troops in the Gulf region for a possible attack on Iraq, although most of its allies in the region publicly oppose such a military confrontation, reported the British network.