Ayatollah Qassem, Bahraini Groups Denounce Deal with Zionist Entity

“There is a great divergence between the rulers and the ruled in thought, mind, aims and interests. Governments are experiencing a psychological defeat and want to impose it on the people, and the people have to resist this defeat,” Ayatollah Qassem said in a statement published by prominent Bahraini opposition party Al-Wefaq.

A joint statement by a group of Bahraini political and civil society associations, including the Bahrain Bar Association, on Sunday also stood against the deal.

“What results from normalization will not enjoy popular backing, in line with what generations of Bahrainis have been brought up on in terms of adherence to the Palestinian cause,” the statement said.

The head of Bahrain’s highest court ordered judiciary employees not to criticize government policy or express opinions harming national unity, al-Bilad newspaper reported on Sunday.

Bahrainis have previously criticized their government’s engagements with the Zionist entity, including last June’s conference in Manama to launch a US-led $50 billion economic formula for Israeli-Palestinian peace.

Parliament last April joined social media calls to stop Israeli business and government officials attending an international entrepreneurship conference.