The Muharraq Governorate ( ar, محافظة المحرق, Muḥāfaẓat al-Muḥarraq) is one of the four

governorates of Bahrain Bahrain is divided into four Governorates: the Capital, Northern, Southern and Muharraq. Until September 2014, there were five, when the Central Governorate was abolished. Each governorate is governed by a Governor, appointed by the Prime Mi ...

. It is now co-extensive with the municipality of

Al Muharraq Muharraq ( ar, المحرق, al-Muḥarraq) is Bahrain's third largest city and served as its capital until 1932 when it was replaced by Manama. The population of Muharraq in 2012 was 176,583. The city is located on Muharraq Island. Bahrain Int ...

and with

Muharraq Island Muharraq Island (), formerly known as Moharek, is the second largest island in the archipelago of Bahrain after Bahrain Island. It lies east of the capital, Manama, on Bahrain Island. History It is named after Muharraq City, the former capital ...

together with outlying islets. It includes the former municipality of Al Hadd at the southern end of that island. The centre of Muharraq contains some of the oldest residential properties in the Kingdom, many of which have been rented out by their Bahraini owners to expatriate workers. There are also many buildings of historic interest in the town's crowded lanes, including the Shaikh Isa bin Ali House, Siyadi House, the

wind towers Wind is the natural movement of air or other gases relative to a planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heating of land surfaces and lasting a few hou ...

, the infamous Falcon Statue and the neighbourhood of journalist Abdullah Al Zayed House, as well as the impressive

Arad Fort __NOTOC__ Arad Fort ( ar, قلعة عراد, ''Qal'at 'Arad'') is a 15th-century fort in Arad, Bahrain. Formerly guarding a separate island of its own, the fort and its surroundings have since been joined to Muharraq Island. Arad Fort was built ...

. The government has been accused on not putting enough money into the restoration of these historic sites to turn them into tourist attractions. The head of

Salafist The Salafi movement or Salafism () is a reform branch movement within Sunni Islam that originated during the nineteenth century. The name refers to advocacy of a return to the traditions of the "pious predecessors" (), the first three generati ...

Asalah party, Ghanim Al Buaneen, responded to news that the government was to invest BD5 million into protecting these sites by dismissing the amount as too little and said the island needed between BD50 million and BD100 million for the facelift of entire old areas. Al-Menbar Islamic Society MP Dr Ali Ahmed said the effort to preserve Bahrain's traditions had not been a success story due to the government's poor planning and the public unawareness about the initiatives.“Although Muharraq has a lot to offer to tourists, how can we attract them if most of our traditional sites are in crowded areas

Local councillor Majeed Karimi came to international prominence in 2005 when his spearheaded Islamist party,

Al Wefaq Al-Wefaq National Islamic Society ( ar, جمعية الوفاق الوطني الإسلامية; ), sometimes shortened to simply Al-Wefaq, was a Shi'a Bahraini political party, that operates clandestinely after being ordered by the highest co ...

's campaign decided to ban

lingerie Lingerie (, , ) is a category of primarily women's clothing including undergarments (mainly brassieres), sleepwear, and lightweight robes. The choice of the word is often motivated by an intention to imply that the garments are alluring, fash ...

mannequins A mannequin (also called a dummy, lay figure, or dress form) is a doll, often articulated, used by artists, tailors, dressmakers, window dressers and others, especially to display or fit clothing and show off different fabrics and textiles. P ...

, blaming them for rising divorce rates in the area. While Al-Menbar Islamic Society local councillor, Saleh Al Jowder, launched his bid for a parliamentary seat in 2006's election by announcing that the council would deal with complaints about peeping toms by fitting all multistorey buildings with one way glass so that residents cannot see out. Muharraq island is also the site of

Bahrain International Airport Bahrain International Airport ( ar, مطار البحرين الدولي, ''maṭār al-Baḥrayn al-dwalī'') is the international airport of Bahrain. Located on Muharraq Island, adjacent to the capital Manama, it serves as the hub for the nati ...

, although the local Asalah MP has called for it to be relocated because the sound of aeroplanes landing and taking off has disturbed local residents.

References

Governorates of Bahrain {{Bahrain-geo-stub