Bahrainis voice solidarity with Sheikh Qassim

Dozens of demonstrators have taken to the streets across Bahrain to express solidarity with prominent Shia cleric Sheikh Isa Qassim, who was recently stripped of his citizenship, as well as jailed activists and political prisoners.

According to Press TV, protesters demonstrated in Bilad al-Qadeem, a suburb of the capital, Manama, al-Musalla Village, the north-central village of Bu Quwah, the northwestern village of Diraz, and the town of A’ali, on Tuesday evening, chanting slogans against the ruling Ale Khalifah regime in condemnation of the measure against the 79-year-old clergyman.

The protesters also carried the portraits of the spiritual leader of Bahrain’s main opposition bloc, the al-Wefaq National Islamic Society, and prominent Bahraini opposition figure as well as national Bahraini flags.

A similar rally was also staged in the island of Sitra, located five kilometers (3.1 miles) south of Manama, where clashes broke between demonstrators and Bahraini regime forces.

Regime forces fired a number of teargas canisters to suppress the protest and disperse the crowd.

Separately, a group of young Bahraini men blocked the King Fahd Causeway, which connects Saudi Arabia with Bahrain.

The Lebanese resistance movement, Hezbollah, has denounced Manama’s measure against Sheikh Qassim as “silly” and “dangerous,” warning that the move will trigger a harsh response from the Bahraini people.

Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has also condemned the decision as “a Saudi plot,” saying it will fuel the flames of “Bahrain’s Islamic Revolution” against the ruling family.

ME