Bahrain Mirror: The Minor Criminal Court, presided over by Judge Hussain Sheikh, and Mohammad al-Harban as secretariat, looked yesterday afternoon (Tuesday), into the case of president of the Islamic Enlightenment Society (Tawiya), Sheikh Baqir al-Hawaj, and the vice president of the group, who are accused of fundraising without a permit.

The court decided to adjourn the case until the hearing on September 7, 2016, in order to look into, respond, and give a copy of the case and pleading documents to the present attorney. Both accused members of the "Tawiya Society" had denied the charges, which stated that from August 1, 2013 until April 6, 2016, they had gathered money without having a permit issued by the authorities.

The authorities claim that the information they received came from "confidential sources", say that Sheikh Baqir al-Hawaj exploited bank accounts to collect money for Tawiya.

The authorities also allege that Sheikh al-Hawaj opened several bank accounts in order "to collect money without permission from the authorities, and that he deposits amounts in minimum, which do not require revealing their source."

Among the people present at the first session were lawyer Jassim Sarhan, who requested the case papers, and demanded a lift of the travel ban imposed on his client Sheikh Baqir al-Hawaj, especially that he is a cleric, and he is used to performing pilgrimage in Mecca since the past 10 years.

Arabic Version