Senior Iranian cleric condemns Slaman’s arrest

A senior Iranian cleric has called for the immediate release of Bahrain’s Sheikh Ali Salman.

Ayatollah Hossein Nouri Hamedani said Thursday in a statement that Bahrain’s detention of Sheikh Salman is a “blatant violation of the rights of people who demand freedom of expression.”

Bahraini forces on Sunday arrested Sheikh Salman, who leads Bahrain’s main opposition bloc, al-Wefaq National Islamic Society. Manama announced Tuesday that the cleric had been remanded in custody for a week pending further questioning.

Ayatollah Hamedani, who is a source of emulation based in the Iranian holy city of Qom, condemned the Al Khalifa regime’s reckless treatment of the Bahraini people and called for the immediate release of Sheikh Salman and “all innocent individuals incarcerated in Al Khalifa prisons.”

He called on relevant international organizations to “break their silence” and stop the regimes’ violation of the rights of the oppressed people in Bahrain.

In the statement, the cleric also condemned outrageous acts by Al Khalifa, including the destruction of mosques, Quran burning and irreverent behavior toward Bahrain’s leading Shia cleric, Ayatollah Sheikh Isa Ahmed Qassim.