Muslims Stage Rally Outside Swedish Parliament against Bahrain Executions
They attended a rally, organized by the Imam Ali (AS) Islamic Center, which was addressed by a number of Muslim figures, including Hojat-ol-Islam Hakim Elahi, the director of the center, and Heydar Ibrahim, a member of the city’s municipal council and head of the Shias Association of Sweden.
In a statement, those attending the rally condemned the execution of the three activists whose only crime was pursuing Bahraini citizens’ basic rights.
They slammed the Bahraini regime for cracking down on peaceful demonstrations in the Persian Gulf country instead of recognizing people’s fundamental rights and respecting the citizens’ legitimate demands.
They also criticized Middle East countries and other countries in the world as well as the media for their silence over the crimes committed by the ruling Al Khalifa regime in Bahrain.
The statement further called on the Swedish government to put pressure on the Manama regime for the immediate release of political prisoners and an end to the crackdown on the Persian Gulf country’s people.
On January 15, Bahrain carried out its first execution after a more than six-year hiatus.
The executions of Shia activists Sami Mushaima, Abbas Jamil Tahir al-Sami’ and Ali Abdulshahid al-Singace came after the Court of Cassation upheld the death penalties given to the trio over allegations of killing a member of Emirati forces in al-Daih in March 2014.
The defendants had denied the charges.
Bahrain has a majority Shia population which has long complained of marginalization by the regime.
Thousands of anti-regime protesters have held numerous demonstrations in Bahrain on an almost daily basis ever since a popular uprising began in the kingdom on February 14, 2011.
They are demanding that the Al Khalifa dynasty relinquish power and a just system representing all Bahrainis be established.
Manama has spared no effort to clamp down on the dissent and rights activists. On March 14, 2011, troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were deployed to Bahrain to assist the Manama government in its crackdown.
Scores of people have lost their lives and hundreds of others sustained injuries or got arrested as a result of Al Khalifa regime’s crackdown on anti-regime activists.
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