A Saudi court has sentenced to death a prominent Shia religious leader and anti-government protest leader for sedition and disobeying the kingdoms rulers. Nimr al-Nimr, who is in his 50s, was a driving force behind demonstrations in the oil-rich east in 2011 against the kingdoms Sunni rulers, in tandem with the Shia-led protests in neighboring Bahrain. He was arrested in 2012 and put on trial last year. He was also convicted of seeking foreign interference in the country, a reference to Iran, his brother Mohammed al-Nimr wrote on Twitter on Wednesday. Nimrs family accused the court of ignoring his peaceful and non violent approach, saying the case had caused social and political discontent. His relatives in the Eastern Province of Awamiya and Qatif said in a statement that the ruling was pure politics. They called for a dialogue with officials, out of concern for our dear country. Most of Saudi Arabias estimated two million Shias live in the east, which is the home for the vast majority of the kingdoms huge oil reserves. Sectarian tension Rallies in Saudi Arabia were prompted by violence between Shia pilgrims and religious police in Medina in February 2011. At the same time, Saudi rulers had sent troops to aid Bahrains Sunni monarchy quell an uprising by Bahrains Shias. Saudi courts have since sentenced people to death and jailed dozens for forming a terrorist group and other crimes linked to the protests. Nimr said in November 2011 that Saudi Shias were determined to demand our legitimate rights by peaceful means. He also demanded the release of all those arrested in the protests, and all prisoners of conscience - Sunnis and Shia. King Abdullah called in August 2012 for the creation of a center for Sunni-Shia interfaith dialogue. However, discontent continues to simmer in the east, and breaking into occasional violence. PHOTO CAPTION A Bahraini anti-government protester holds up a picture of jailed Saudi Sheik Nimr al-Nimr during clashes with riot police in Sanabis, Bahrain, a suburb of the capital Manama, Wednesday night, Oct. 15, 2014. Aljazeera
Posted on: Thu, 16 Oct 2014 05:40:24 +0000
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