Bahrain Police Surround Home of Shiite Leader

Reuters reported, citing Bahraini political activists, that police and security forces clashed with supporters of Sheikh Isa Qassim, the leader of Shiites in the country, near his home. In this confrontation that took place on Wednesday, December 1, two supporters of Sheikh Isa Qassim were also arrested. According to reports shared by Bahraini activists on social media, dozens of police vehicles have surrounded the residence of Ayatollah Qassim in the village of Daraz, which is being protected 24/7 by his supporters to prevent his arrest. These reports and images released by Bahraini activists, whose authenticity has not been confirmed by Reuters, show police forces firing tear gas at protesters who are throwing stones. The Bahraini Ministry of Interior, in an official statement on its Twitter page, announced a court order to search the homes and village of individuals wanted in order to maintain security and enforce the law. As Reuters noted, this news agency was unable to speak with official authorities in the country, and it is unclear whether they intended to arrest Sheikh Qassim as well. The leader of the Shiites in Bahrain has had his citizenship revoked by the monarchy on charges of 'promoting violence and having relations with foreign countries,' which appears to refer to Iran, and he has also been accused of money laundering and collecting funds through illegal means; Qassim and his supporters deny these accusations. Concurrently with the occurrence of the 'Arab Spring' in 2011, Bahrain faced internal unrest from its Shiite population and has used assistance from Gulf Arab countries to suppress dissent. The Bahraini government's action to dissolve the opposition party 'Al-Wefaq' and the arrest of a prominent human rights activist in the country in the summer of this year faced protests from the United Nations and the United States. Al-Wefaq is a Shiite party. Although the majority of Bahrain's population is Shiite, a Sunni minority governs the country.