Bahrain's crown prince has made a renewed appeal for dialogue to end the political impasse in the Gulf kingdom, a call welcomed by the Shiite-led opposition, despite no end in sight to violent protests.

Prince Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa, widely viewed as a moderate member of the Sunni ruling dynasty, took the opportunity when hosting a global security conference last week to invite the Shiite opposition to sit down and talk. "We had our own experience of the so-called Arab Spring last year. It divided the nation, and many wounds are still to be healed," he told the conference."I am convinced... that dialogue is the only way forward" in the tiny but strategic nation across the Gulf from Iran, and the base of the US Fifth Fleet.

 But he also said "opposition leaders must condemn violence on the streets. Silence is not an option," while insisting that "political groups must be reconciled." For his part, State Minister for Information Samira Rajab told AFP that "dialogue is the only solution; a consensual dialogue between all forces to reach a comprehensive solution." Al-Wefaq, the largest Shiite opposition formation, seized on the crown prince's proposal and responded positively, but demanded a "serious dialogue" and said the results must be subject to a referendum.

The crown prince's latest overture is just one in a series of calls he has made since February 2011. It was then that activists, mostly from Bahrain's Shiite majority, took a page from the nascent Arab Spring to demand democratic reforms, but were crushed by forces loyal to the Sunni monarch with the aid of Gulf troops led by Sunni neighbour Saudi Arabia.