Bahrain negotiations 'only way forward'

It is two years to the day since protesters occupied the Pearl roundabout in the centre of the capital Manama - demanding democracy and an end to discrimination against the Shia Muslim majority of Bahrain's citizens.

In the end they were crushed - in an action widely condemned around the world and which has led to promises of reform from the King but promises not yet honoured.

It has been reported that a teenage protester has been shot dead in Bahrain.

Frank Gardner, the BBC's security correspondent who has recently retuned from the Middle East, told told Today presenter Justin Webb that "the government is still being criticised for being heavy handed".

"Sensible people in Bahrain know that the only way out of this is negotiation," he explained.

First broadcast on BBC Radio 4's Today programme on Thursday 14 February 2013.