Bahraini Crackdown: Regime Bans Friday Prayers in Diraz for 28th Week

Local Editor

The Bahraini regime continued to prevent citizens from performing the largest Friday prayers for the 28th week.

Regime forces applied heavy measures, blocking streets leading to Imam Sadeq Mosque in the besieged town of Diraz, al-Manar Tv reported.

Diraz had been since June witnessing a sit-in by dozens of citizens, in protest against authorities' decision to strip prominent Shia cleric, Sheikh Issa al-Qassem of his citizenship.

Earlier this week, Bahrain's appeals court had ruled to uphold a nine-year jail sentence handed down to senior Shia opposition cleric, Sheikh Ali Salman, despite widespread criticism both at home and abroad against his imprisonment.

Sheikh Salman was arrested in December 2014 for backing reforms in the country through peaceful means.

Bahraini authorities revoked Sheikh Qassem's citizenship on June 20. They later dissolved the main opposition bloc, the al-Wefaq National Islamic Society, which Sheikh Salman heads, as well as the Islamic Enlightenment Institution, founded by the 79-year-old cleric, besides another opposition movement, the al-Risala Islamic Association.

The European Union [EU] and the 35-member UN Human Rights Council [UNHRC] had recently urged Bahrain to end its heavy-handed crackdown on political dissent.

Since February 14, 2011, thousands of anti-regime protesters had held numerous demonstrations in Bahrain on an almost daily basis, calling on the Al Khalifa family to relinquish power.

Source: al-Manar, Edited by website team