Bahraini Revolution to Remain Peaceful: Representative
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The representative of prominent Bahraini cleric Sheikh Isa Ahmed Qassim, whose nationality has been recently revoked by the Al Khalifa regime, said the popular uprising in the Arab country will remain peaceful in nature unless Manama resorts to assassinations.
“The popular and peaceful revolution in Bahrain will continue,” Sheikh Abdullah Daqaq, representative of Sheikh Qassim in Iran, said Wednesday in a press conference at the head office of the Tasnim News Agency in Tehran.
It is not expected that the Bahraini revolution become violent unless the regime resorts to assassination of Sheikh Qassim or somehow try to keep him away from the nation, the cleric said.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Sheikh Daqaq pointed to a recent statement by Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force Major General Qassem Soleimani, who gave a stern warning against the Bahraini rulers’ continued crackdown on peaceful public protests in the Persian Gulf country and its recent move against Sheikh Qassim.
“The message by General Qassem Soleimani, God bless him, was a crystal clear message for the government of Bahrain,” Sheikh Daqaq said.
In a statement on Monday evening, General Soleimani described disrespect for Sheikh Qassim as a “red line” that, when crossed, will “spark flames of fire in Bahrain and across the whole region, leaving people with no choice but armed resistance.”
Bahrain said Monday that the citizenship of Sheikh Qassim has been revoked, accusing him of sowing sectarian divisions.
Bahrain, a close ally of the US in the Persian Gulf region, has been witnessing almost daily protests against the ruling Al Khalifa dynasty since early 2011, with Manama using heavy-handed measures in an attempt to crush the demonstrations.
Scores of Bahrainis have been killed and hundreds of others injured and arrested in the ongoing crackdown on the peaceful demonstrations.
Amnesty International and many other international rights organizations have frequently censured the Bahraini regime for the rampant human rights abuses against opposition groups and anti-regime protesters.