Manama, March 14 (Reuters): Saudi Arabia sent troops into Bahrain today to help put down weeks of protests by the Shia majority, a move opponents of the Sunni ruling family on the island called a declaration of war.

Analysts saw the troop movement into Bahrain as a mark of concern in Saudi Arabia that concessions by the country’s monarchy could inspire the conservative Sunni kingdom’s own Shia minority. About 1,000 Saudi soldiers entered Bahrain to protect government facilities, a Saudi official source said, a day after mainly Shia protesters overran police and blocked roads. “They are part of the Gulf Cooperation Council force that would guard the government installations,” the source said, referring to the six-member bloc that coordinates military and economic policy in the region.