Muslims Urged to Rise against Saudi Regime after Execution of Sheikh Nimr
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A senior Iranian cleric on Saturday strongly condemned Saudi Arabia’s execution of prominent Shiite cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, and called on the Muslim world to protest at the “shameful” move.
“The execution of Sheikh Nimr, as another part of the chain crimes committed by the Al Saud regime, will remain as an eternal shame for the regime,” Ayatollah Seyed Ahmad Khatami told the Tasnim News Agency.
He said the Saudi rulers will one day face the consequences of their crimes, adding that the blood of innocent people will ultimately bring an end to the Al Saud regime.
“It is expected of the Muslim world to voice their protest at the criminal government (of Saudi Arabia) through their Islamic outcry, and pay homage to this brave and devoted Sheikh,” he added.
Ayatollah Khatami further said the execution of Sheikh Nimr was only one of the heinous crimes committed by Riyadh, noting that the Saudi regime has been massacring the innocent people of Yemen in its ongoing brutal aggression against the Arabian Peninsula country.
Saudi Arabia executed 47 prisoners on Saturday, including Sheikh Nimr, the Arab country’s interior ministry said in a statement.
The cleric’s name was among a list of the 47 carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency. It cited the interior ministry for the information. Saudi state television also reported the executions.
Sheikh Nimr was detained in July 2012 on charges of delivering anti-regime speeches and defending political prisoners.
His arrest sparked widespread protests in the Arab country, leaving several people dead.
In 2014, a Saudi judge found him guilty of “sedition” and sentenced him to death.
In October 2015, a Saudi appeals court upheld the death sentence, referring his case to King Salman’s office.
United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, among many others, had called on Riyadh to halt the execution of Sheikh Nimr.
