Bahrainis mark Eid al-Adha with anti-regime rallies

Bahraini people have marked the Muslim occasion of Eid al-Adha (the Feast of Sacrifice) with rallies in solidarity with top Shia cleric Sheikh Isa Qassim.

Bahrainis held the Eid prayers in front of the house of Sheikh Qassim in the northwestern village of Diraz and then staged a rally in support of the cleric.

They also voiced support for the participants in a sit-in that has been ongoing outside the residence of the distinguished religious figure since the revocation of his citizenship by the Manama regime.

Meanwhile, people also took to the streets in al-Musalla Village on the western outskirts of the capital, Manama, holding portraits of Sheikh Qassim as well Bahraini flags.

Similar anti-regime protests also took place in the villages of Abu Saiba and Shakhura west of the capital.

The demonstrators also condemned the prosecution of Shia Muslims in Bahrain.

Bahraini authorities revoked Sheikh Qassim’s citizenship on June 20.

The regime has dissolved Shia opposition groups and confiscated their properties. It has also imprisoned Shia leaders in a large-scale campaign against dissent.

Anti-regime protesters have been staging demonstrations in Bahrain on an almost daily basis since February 14, 2011, calling on the Al Khalifah regime to relinquish power. Troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were deployed to Bahrain in March that year to assist Manama in the crackdown on peaceful and pro-democracy rallies.

Scores of people have been killed and hundreds of others injured or arrested in Manama’s crackdown on anti-regime activists.