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Bahrain dissolves opposition group

July 17, 2016

A Bahraini court has ordered a main opposition group to be dissolved and its assets liquidated. This comes despite appeals by rights groups that the Shiite organization is a legitimate voice in the kingdom.

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Proteste in Bahrain gegen Festnahme von Al-Wefak-Generalsekretär Scheich Ali Salman
Image: Reuters

Bahrain's opposition al Wasat newspaper reported Sunday that the court ruled Al-Wefaq's political activities had "deviated" towards incitement to violence and the encouragement of mass protests and sit-ins that could lead to sectarian strife.

The court accused the group of "inciting violence and encouraging demonstrations and sit-ins which could lead to sectarian strife in the country."

Bahrain has a majority Shiite Muslim population but a Sunni-led government, mainly drawn from the ruling al-Khalifa family.

The ruling against Al-Wefaq follows an intensified crackdown on dissent in the Sunni-ruled island kingdom, which is home to the US Navy's 5th Fleet. Its location is strategic as Iran lies on the other side of the Persian Gulf.

Al-Wefaq had been the largest bloc in parliament before its lawmakers resigned in protest at the crushing of 2011 protests calling for a fully elected government.

Despite public appeals from Washington, Bahrain continues to crack down on leading Shiite figures

Leader indicted and jailed

Al-Wefaq's leader, Shiite cleric Ali Salman, has been jailed since 2014 and is serving a nine-year jail term for inciting violence after a court more than doubled his sentence in May.

Al-Wefaq, also known as the Islamic National Accord Association, is heir to the Bahrain Freedom Movement and has long sought the restoration of the elected parliament which was scrapped in 1975.

Earlier this month a court also denied bail for human rights activist Nabeel Rajab as he went on trial on charges of insulting a state institution and neighboring Saudi Arabia.

jar/jm (AFP, AP)