Alwaght- Massive rallies have been held Saudi Arabia and Bahrain to mark the 40th day since the oppressive execution of prominent Islamic scholar Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr by the Saudi regime.
According reports, Saudis held a major rally on Thursday in Qatif city of the Eastern Province, where protestors chanted “Death to Al Saud” and “Down with the House of Saud” to denounce the ruling Saudi family for the execution.
The irate protestors said the Saudi regime had the blood of innocent people on its hands.
The demonstration came a day after Sheikh Nimr’s family called on Saudi authorities to hand over his body.
The Saudi regime executed Sheikh Nimr on January 2, defying international calls to stop the execution and release him. The execution sparked widespread international condemnations and protests across the world.
Many of the Qatif residents, located near major oil facilities in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province, work for the state energy company Saudi Aramco.
Past protests have not led to attacks on the oil industry, but a bus used by Aramco to transport employees was set ablaze during a night rally in early January.
Shiite Muslims who are the majority in Eastern Saudi Arabia have long complained of discrimination in a country where the official Wahhabi ideology condones violence against them.
The Shiites face abuse sanctioned by Wahhabi clerics and rarely get permits for places of worship and seldom get senior public sector jobs.
Those basic complaints have over the years been aggravated by a heavy-handed crackdown against their community. The Shias accuse the authorities of unfair detentions and punishments, shooting unarmed protesters and torturing detainees.
The Shiite-dominated Eastern Province has been the scene of peaceful demonstrations since February 2011. Protesters have been demanding reforms, freedom of expression and the release of political prisoners. They want an end to economic and religious discrimination against the region.
Similar protest rallies were held across neighboring Bahrain on Thursday to slam the unjust execution of Sheikh Nimr.
Meanwhile Saudi authorities prevented Friday prayers in a Husayniyah in al-Ahsaa governorate, as tensions rise over the execution of Sheikh Nimr.
Khabir electronic newspaper reported that the Saudi authorities shut down Rasoul al-Azam mosque in al-Ahsaa, after preventing Sheikh Hussein Radhi from performing Friday prayers there.
The newspaper said that the move comes after Sheikh Radhi slammed the Saudi authorities.
The move also comes after some media reports said that Sheikh Radhi was summoned for questioning, according to Khabir.
Sheikh Radhi slammed the Saudi regime over the execution of Sheikh Nimr, the war on Yemen as well as the Takfiri ideology which he considers is widespread in the Saudi Kingdom.
Sheikh Nimr was a vocal supporter of the mass pro-democracy protests against Riyadh, which erupted in Eastern Province in 2011, where a Shiite majority has long complained of marginalization.