MANAMA, BAHRAIN - Anti-government protesters streamed back into Bahrain's Pearl Square roundabout Saturday to continue their push for political reforms after tanks and armored personnel carriers rumbled out of the capital following an order by the crown prince for the military to withdraw. 
 
 Police at first fired tear gas at the protesters as they approached the site they were forcibly expelled from just three days ago, witnesses said, but then security forces pulled back to allow the demonstrators to reach the roundabout, located in the financial district of the capital, Manama. 
 
 Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa, who has been assigned to try to broker a dialogue with the country's mostly Shiite-led opposition, appears to hope that by halting the heavy-handed tactics employed by security services over the past few days, he can create an opening for discussion of the protesters' grievances. 
 
 In a statement released Saturday, the crown prince appealed to all political factions to join hands and "begin a new phase" in which "we will discuss all our issues sincerely and honestly." 
 
 The statement represented a "180-degree change of policy," said Jassim Hussain, a member of the leading Shiite political party, al-Wefaq, which withdrew its 18 members from the 40-seat parliament after a deadly crackdown on demonstrators Thursday. 
 
 The party has still not decided whether to sit down with the crown prince. "Al-Wefaq made a decree that they need the right environment before any serious dialogue can start. I'm sure this kind of environment will help," Hussain said. But he added, referring to the broader opposition movement: "We still have people who are not in the mood to talk." 
 
 The disunity within the opposition over its ultimate goals and the protesters' passionate determination to continue demonstrating have left the outcome of this uprising uncertain and even the short-term outlook hard to predict. 
 
 The Bahraini military's retreat came after a violent turn of events in the Middle East on Friday, as U.S.-allied governments in Yemen and Bahrain opened fire on their citizens, prompting Britain and France to announce a halt in arms sales. 
 
 The use of live ammunition against pro-democracy demonstrators also triggered sharp criticism from President Obama, who called on authorities in Yemen, Bahrain and Libya to show restraint and "respect the rights of their people." Obama later spoke to the Bahraini king Friday night and urged that "those responsible for the violence" be held accountable. 
 
 Clashes erupted across the region Friday, from Jordan to Djibouti. An eighth straight day of violence in Yemen claimed at least one life in the southern city of Aden, where police fired gunshots to break up a crowd. In Libya, the death toll was reported to be in the dozens after four days of clashes in the coastal city of Benghazi, where security forces have also fired on protesters. 
 
 But the response from security forces was most heavy-handed in tiny Bahrain, home to the U.S. 5th Fleet, where soldiers used armored personnel carriers and machine guns to fire on protesters, wounding dozens, at least four of them critically. 
 
 Bahrain's king tried to restore calm by appointing his son, the crown prince, to lead a dialogue with anti-government demonstrators, most of them Shiite Muslims, who are demanding greater representation and other democratic reforms in a country where most power is wielded by the Sunni minority. ||||| President Barack Obama condemned the violence in Bahrain and urged the country's king in a phone call Friday night to show restraint after a series of bloody protests. 
 
 Bahraini volunteers donate blood at a hospital in Manama, Bahrain, Friday, Feb. 18, 2011. Soldiers fired tear gas and shot heavy weapons into the air as thousands of protest marchers defied a government... (Associated Press) 
 
 An unidentified Bahraini with blood from the injured stands in front of army tanks near the Pearl roundabout Friday, Feb. 18, 2011, in Manama, Bahrain. Soldiers fired tear gas and shot heavy weapons into... (Associated Press) 
 
 Bahraini Shiite anti-government protesters chant anti-government slogans as they gather inside a building in Manama, Bahrain, Friday, Feb. 18, 2011. Soldiers confronted some thousands of protest marchers... (Associated Press) 
 
 Paramedics treat injured Bahraini protesters near the Pearl roundabout Friday, Feb. 18, 2011, in Manama, Bahrain. Soldiers fired tear gas and shot heavy weapons into the air as thousands of protest marchers... (Associated Press) 
 
 Obama discussed the situation with King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain, asking the king to hold those responsible for the violence accountable. 
 
 Obama says Bahrain must respect the "universal rights" of its people and embrace "meaningful reform." 
 
 Security forces opened fire on Bahraini protesters for a second straight day, wounding at least 50 people as thousands defied the government and marched in an uprising that sought to break the political grip of the Gulf nation's leaders. 
 
 Earlier in the day, Obama cited reports of violence in response to protests in Bahrain, Libya and Yemen and called on the governments of those countries to show restraint. 
 
 Obama said the governments of the three countries should respect the rights of citizens demonstrating peacefully in the wake of Egypt's uprising. He expressed condolences to the families of those killed. 
 
 The president's statement was read aloud by White House press secretary Jay Carney to reporters traveling with the president on Air Force One from California to Oregon.
– Bahrain protesters reclaimed their symbolic Pearl Square today, after the nation's leaders ordered the military to withdraw in a key concession that came just a day after a brutal crackdown that injured at least 50 and drew a sharp condemnation from President Obama. Members of the opposition chanted, "We are victorious," as they poured into the square carrying flags and flowers. Bahrain's king is signaling that he's open to talks with the opposition, reports the Washington Post, appointing his son, Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad al Khalifa, as point man. The crown prince appeared briefly on state TV, reports the AP, to urge talks and calm.