(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - People in Indian-controlled Kashmir have condemned a Saudi prosecutor's demand of the death penalty for senior Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr Baqir-al-Nimr. He is an outspoken critic of Saudi rulers.
The demonstrators took to streets after Friday prayers in central Kashmir’s Budgam area, calling for the immediate release of the Shia cleric.
Chanting anti-US and anti-Israel slogans, the demonstrators condemned the Saudi regime for suppressing the Shia community in the country.
Religious leaders have accused the US and Israel of playing a covert role in Sheikh Nimr’s case to drive a wedge between Saudi Arabia and Iran.
He said the kingdom has a Shia population of more than 3 million, but the community is facing the worst exploitation and deprivation in the country.
Sheikh Nimr was attacked and subsequently arrested by Saudi authorities in July 2012 apparently for demanding the rights of religious minorities and release of anti-regime protesters.
Scores of political activists have been reportedly detained without trial or charges during anti-regime protests since February 2011.
Saudi Arabia has come under attack from global human rights watchdog bodies like Human Rights Watch for repressing the voice of dissent.
The detained cleric had called for the release of all prisoners of conscience and all anti-government protesters.
People in Kashmir have expressed solidarity with Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr. They are calling for the immediate release of the senior cleric, who they believe has been charged for his voice of dissent against the Saudi monarchy.
/129
6 April 2013 - 10:10
News ID: 406384
People in Indian-controlled Kashmir have condemned a Saudi prosecutor's demand of the death penalty for senior Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr Baqir-al-Nimr. He is an outspoken critic of Saudi rulers.
