Alwaght-Bahrain’s
prominent Shia cleric Ayatollah Sheikh Isa Ahmed Qassim has warned that a delay
in political reforms in the country could lead to a national catastrophe, as
Press TV reported.
Sheikh Qassim
lashed out at the Bahraini regime over what he called empty promises for reform.
“The time for reform is today and surely not tomorrow,” he said.
The cleric said
no one could deny the corruption in the country.
Sheikh Qassim
also repeated the calls of human rights watchdogs for releasing political
prisoners in Bahrain.
The
highest-profile activist is Sheikh Ali Salman, the secretary general of the
main opposition group, Al-Wefaq. The
cleric has been in custody since late December over charges of inciting
violence and promoting regime change.
Saudi-aided
crackdown
Since
mid-February 2011, thousands of anti-regime protesters have held numerous
demonstrations on the streets of Bahrain, calling for the Al Khalifa family to
relinquish power.
The Manama
regime’s crackdown on peaceful protests has intensified since the arrest of
Sheikh Salman.
Scores of
people have been killed and hundreds of others injured and arrested in the
crackdown on peaceful demonstrations since 2011.
On March 14,
2011, troops from Saudi and the UAE were deployed to
Bahrain to assist the Manama government in its crackdown on peaceful protesters.
Bahrain's
opposition has frequently said it considered any foreign military intervention
to be an occupation. It has also called
on the international community to act to ensure the protection of the people of
Bahrain from the danger of foreign military intervention.
Amnesty
International and several other human rights organizations have repeatedly called
on Bahraini officials to observe the citizens’ rights to freedom of expression
and assembly.
