MANAMA, Bahrain — Authorities in Bahrain say a series of bomb blasts has killed two people in the capital, Manama.

The apparently coordinated explosions Monday point to escalating levels of violence by anti-government forces in the nearly 21-month uprising against the Gulf nation’s Western-backed rulers.

The Interior Ministry says two Asian men, including one trash collector, were killed and a third person injured as at least five homemade explosive devices were detonated. The official Bahrain News Agency described the blasts as an “act of terrorism.”

More than 55 people have been killed in Bahrain’s unrest since February 2001 as the nation’s majority Shiites press for a greater political voice in the Sunni-ruled kingdom.

Bahrain is home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet.