(AhlulBayt News Agency) - AhlulBayt World Assembly has issued a statement on occasion of first anniversary of Sheikh Isa Qassim’s house arrest in Bahrain.
The full text of the statement is as follows:
IN THE NAME OF ALLAH
The Ahlulbayt World Assembly’s Statement
on the 1st Anniversary of Sheikh Isa Qassim’s House Arrest in Bahrain
We are on the threshold of the first anniversary of the heinous crime of Al Khalifa regime - supported by the United States, British government, and Saudi regime - against hundreds of Bahraini citizens who had peacefully staged a sit-in alongside the house of the great Muslim scholar, Sheikh Isa Ahmed Qassim.
In that crime that took place a year after the epic protests against the outrageous decision of the Bahraini government on stripping the citizenship of Ayatollah Isa Qassim, a number of brave citizens were martyred, scores wounded, and hundreds arrested.
The anniversary of this crime comes, while the unjust security blockade continues against the al-Daraz area; thousands of Shiite Muslims are within this siege for more than 700 days; and confinement of Ayatollah Sheikh Isa Qassim to his residence is still going on, which has caused his physical deterioration due to the prohibition of treatment for a long time.
There is also a continuation of the ban on the largest Friday prayer of Shia Muslims in Imam Sadiq Mosque in Al-Daraz, which has lasted for 90 weeks. In addition, the political crisis has reached its highest level in Bahrain, and the statistics of martyrs, wounded people, detainees, and those who have been sentenced to exile has increased. We are still witnessing military trials, closure of political parties such as al-Wefaq, and trial of dignitaries like Sheikh Ali Salman on baseless accusations. Oppression and religious discrimination in governmental centers is going on; and paying religious levy like Khums and Zakat are considered an offense! The Bahraini media has been turned into an instrument in the hands of the Bahraini’s government to spread violence and hatred.
Al Khalifa's regime is stepping up its oppressions, tribal discriminations, and repressive actions. Ignoring national demands by the majority of political bodies for social justice and realization of full political rights, the Bahraini regime is normalizing relations with the Zionist enemy of Israel in an attempt to compensate for the crisis of its national legitimacy.
Al Khalifa feels no shame for its friendship with the Zionists. Its repressive measures against the people of Bahrain are similar to that of Zionists in dealing with Palestinian people.
The Ahlulbayt World Assembly condemns the continuation of crimes committed by Al Khalifa regime against the Bahrainis as well as the extension of Ayatollah Sheikh Isa Qassim’s house arrest and the unceasing inhuman and illegal actions of the regime in the wake of deadly silence of Western countries who claim to be defenders of human rights.
We urge Grand Muslim clerics, religious organizations, human rights bodies, and all free-thinking people around the world to voice their solidarity with the Bahraini nation and to condemn the Bahraini government’s atrocities against its nation and Muslim clerics.
And those who act unjustly shall know to what final place of turning they shall be returned.
The Ahlulbayt World Assembly
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