Bahrain Mirror: In an escalatory move, an official Bahraini state newspaper reported that the High Criminal Court set Wednesday (July 27, 2016) as a date for the first hearing in the Bahraini Shia spiritual leader Sheikh Isa Qassim's trial, over charges linked to the Khums (alms) religious Shiite ritual.

The King of Bahrain Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa had issued a royal decree last month, stripping Sheikh Qassim of his nationality in a series of widespread measures aimed at targeting the Shiite religious institutions and rituals in the country.

The government dissolved the main opposition group Al-Wefaq, which is headed by Sheikh Ali Salman, who was sentenced to 9 years in prison, as well as two other religious groups. The authorities have also prevented the Shia from holding their largest congregational Friday prayers at Imam Sadiq Mosque.

This new step increases ongoing tensions since more than 5 years, after the Bahrain government sought the help of Saudi forces to crush nationwide protests in March 2011, and demolished more than 40 Shiite mosques across the country.

Arabic Version