Muhammed45
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Iran blames Trump as Shia protesters killed in Bahrain police raid
Armed police storm the home of a controversial Shia Muslim leader just days after the US President pledged to improve ties.
12:21, UK,Wednesday 24 May 2017
Video:Bahrain protesters confront armed police
Five protesters were killed and 286 arrested after police in Bahrain raided the hometown of a Shia Muslim spiritual leader who faces deportation.
Sheikh Isa Qassim was stripped of his citizenship last June, and last week a court gave him a year's suspended sentence for financial corruption.
He was not among those detained in Diraz, but the interior ministry said "terrorists and convicted felons" were hiding inside his home.
Footage from the town showed protesters confronting armoured vehicles and police.
Gunshots are heard and white smoke from tear gas can be seen.
Image:Trump met Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa in Riyadh on Sunday
Tuesday's violence comes just days after Donald Trump told King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa that he would improve relations between the two countries.
Their relationship has been strained for several years, despite the kingdom being host to the US Navy.
A crackdown on dissent over the last year has heightened tensions between the Shia majority and the Sunni rulers, and access to Diraz has been tightly controlled for months.
Woman confronting the Security Forces in village of Diraz, #Bahrain - Clashes between Police and protesters ongoing since last night. pic.twitter.com/qpOTAolaJl
— Aldin Abazović (@CT_operative) May 23, 2017
Bahrain accuses Iran of encouraging unrest by the country's Shia population, while Iran said Mr Trump's remarks about Tehran supporting militant groups were to blame for the deaths.
Iran's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, tweeted: "First concrete result of POTUS (Trump) cozying up to despots in Riyadh: Deadly attack on peaceful protesters by emboldened Bahrain regime."
Nicholas McGeehan, a senior Bahrain researcher at Human Rights Watch, said: "The timing of this operation two days after King Hamad's convivial meeting with President Trump can hardly be a coincidence."
Ebtasam Alsaegh, from the neighbouring village of Bani Jamra, said mosques had called residents to the streets to protect Sheikh Qassim.
Image protesters confronted armoured vehicles and police
"The situation is terrifying," she said.
The interior ministry said that police had been deployed to remove road blocks and barricades.
"Police remain deployed in the area to ensure the safety of people," it said in a statement.
It added that 19 members of the security services were injured after petrol bombs were thrown at them.
During 2011's Arab Spring, Bahrain crushed an uprising by the Shia community with the help of Saudi Arabia.
Bahrain uses military tactics to quash dissent
Tue May 23, 2017 7:36AM
Bahraini regime forces have stormed into the residence of Sheikh Isa Qassim, the spiritual leader of the country’s Shia majority in a northwestern village, arresting everyone inside the house. It is not yet clear whether Sheikh Qassim himself is among the detainees.
There have been reports of security forces firing birdshot at protesters and teargas into the house of the prominent cleric. Sources have confirmed at least two fatalities. Seven others are said to be in critical condition.
Bahrain’s LuaLua TV reported on Tuesday that a large number of armored and military vehicles had entered a neighborhood in the Diraz Village earlier in the day.
Security forces launched a bloody attack on protesters who had convened in al-Fida Square in Diraz, the possible casualties of which have not been reported yet. The regime also blocked Internet access in the area.
The Manama regime's bulldozers were reportedly removing protesters' blockades and barricades from the streets.
The Bahraini Interior Ministry announced in a statement that security forces had arrested 50 demonstrators in the village.
Furthermore, the country's Islamic Action Society, also referred to as Amal Party, warned Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifah against any assault on Sheikh Qassim.
Diraz is the native village of Sheikh Isa Qassim. It has been the scene of protests since last June, when the authorities stripped the cleric of his citizenship over accusations that he used his position to serve foreign interests and promote “sectarianism” and “violence.” He has denied the allegations.
The protests escalated after a court convicted Qassim on Sunday of the illegal collection of funds and money laundering and sentenced him to one year in jail suspended for three years. The charges emanate from the collection of an Islamic donation called Khums, which in Shia Islam is collected and spent by a senior cleric in the interests of the needy.
A picture posted on Twitter shows a protester injured during clashes with security forces in the northwestern Bahraini village of Diraz on May 23, 2017.
The Tuesday clashes erupted after the protesters, who were wearing shrouds as a sign of their death-defying morale, tried to stop the security forces from entering the neighborhood. Police tear-gassed the protesters.
Since 2011, Bahrain has been witnessing daily rallies against the ruling Al Khalifah regime, which protesters accuse of systematically abusing the Shia population. The regime has been suppressing all dissent, leading to scores of fatalities.
It has also dissolved a number of opposition bodies.
Armed police storm the home of a controversial Shia Muslim leader just days after the US President pledged to improve ties.
12:21, UK,Wednesday 24 May 2017
Video:Bahrain protesters confront armed police
Five protesters were killed and 286 arrested after police in Bahrain raided the hometown of a Shia Muslim spiritual leader who faces deportation.
Sheikh Isa Qassim was stripped of his citizenship last June, and last week a court gave him a year's suspended sentence for financial corruption.
He was not among those detained in Diraz, but the interior ministry said "terrorists and convicted felons" were hiding inside his home.
Footage from the town showed protesters confronting armoured vehicles and police.
Gunshots are heard and white smoke from tear gas can be seen.
Image:Trump met Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa in Riyadh on Sunday
Tuesday's violence comes just days after Donald Trump told King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa that he would improve relations between the two countries.
Their relationship has been strained for several years, despite the kingdom being host to the US Navy.
A crackdown on dissent over the last year has heightened tensions between the Shia majority and the Sunni rulers, and access to Diraz has been tightly controlled for months.
Woman confronting the Security Forces in village of Diraz, #Bahrain - Clashes between Police and protesters ongoing since last night. pic.twitter.com/qpOTAolaJl
— Aldin Abazović (@CT_operative) May 23, 2017
Bahrain accuses Iran of encouraging unrest by the country's Shia population, while Iran said Mr Trump's remarks about Tehran supporting militant groups were to blame for the deaths.
Iran's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, tweeted: "First concrete result of POTUS (Trump) cozying up to despots in Riyadh: Deadly attack on peaceful protesters by emboldened Bahrain regime."
Nicholas McGeehan, a senior Bahrain researcher at Human Rights Watch, said: "The timing of this operation two days after King Hamad's convivial meeting with President Trump can hardly be a coincidence."
Ebtasam Alsaegh, from the neighbouring village of Bani Jamra, said mosques had called residents to the streets to protect Sheikh Qassim.
Image protesters confronted armoured vehicles and police
"The situation is terrifying," she said.
The interior ministry said that police had been deployed to remove road blocks and barricades.
"Police remain deployed in the area to ensure the safety of people," it said in a statement.
It added that 19 members of the security services were injured after petrol bombs were thrown at them.
During 2011's Arab Spring, Bahrain crushed an uprising by the Shia community with the help of Saudi Arabia.
Bahrain uses military tactics to quash dissent
Tue May 23, 2017 7:36AM
Bahraini regime forces have stormed into the residence of Sheikh Isa Qassim, the spiritual leader of the country’s Shia majority in a northwestern village, arresting everyone inside the house. It is not yet clear whether Sheikh Qassim himself is among the detainees.
There have been reports of security forces firing birdshot at protesters and teargas into the house of the prominent cleric. Sources have confirmed at least two fatalities. Seven others are said to be in critical condition.
Bahrain’s LuaLua TV reported on Tuesday that a large number of armored and military vehicles had entered a neighborhood in the Diraz Village earlier in the day.
Security forces launched a bloody attack on protesters who had convened in al-Fida Square in Diraz, the possible casualties of which have not been reported yet. The regime also blocked Internet access in the area.
The Manama regime's bulldozers were reportedly removing protesters' blockades and barricades from the streets.
The Bahraini Interior Ministry announced in a statement that security forces had arrested 50 demonstrators in the village.
Furthermore, the country's Islamic Action Society, also referred to as Amal Party, warned Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifah against any assault on Sheikh Qassim.
Diraz is the native village of Sheikh Isa Qassim. It has been the scene of protests since last June, when the authorities stripped the cleric of his citizenship over accusations that he used his position to serve foreign interests and promote “sectarianism” and “violence.” He has denied the allegations.
The protests escalated after a court convicted Qassim on Sunday of the illegal collection of funds and money laundering and sentenced him to one year in jail suspended for three years. The charges emanate from the collection of an Islamic donation called Khums, which in Shia Islam is collected and spent by a senior cleric in the interests of the needy.
A picture posted on Twitter shows a protester injured during clashes with security forces in the northwestern Bahraini village of Diraz on May 23, 2017.
The Tuesday clashes erupted after the protesters, who were wearing shrouds as a sign of their death-defying morale, tried to stop the security forces from entering the neighborhood. Police tear-gassed the protesters.
Since 2011, Bahrain has been witnessing daily rallies against the ruling Al Khalifah regime, which protesters accuse of systematically abusing the Shia population. The regime has been suppressing all dissent, leading to scores of fatalities.
It has also dissolved a number of opposition bodies.
