Bahraini regime forces have raided the house of prominent Shia Muslim cleric Ayatollah Sheikh Isa Ahmed Qassim, reports say.\n<\/p>\n
Security forces reportedly broke the doors of Sheikh Qassim\u00e2\u201e\u00a2s house in the northwestern village of Diraz and vandalized his property.\n<\/p>\n
The operation, which traumatized the Shia cleric\u00e2\u201e\u00a2 family, was conducted while no anti-regime protests were being held near the area.\n<\/p>\n
Born in 1937, Sheikh Qassim is often referred to as the spiritual leader of Bahrain\u00e2\u201e\u00a2s main opposition bloc al-Wefaq.\n<\/p>\n
A Bahraini uprising began in mid-February 2011, when the people, inspired by the popular revolutions that toppled the dictators of Tunisia and Egypt, started holding massive demonstrations.\n<\/p>\n
The Bahraini regime promptly launched a brutal crackdown on the peaceful protests and called in Saudi-led Arab forces from neighboring states.\n<\/p>\n
Dozens of people have been killed in the crackdown, and the security forces have arrested hundreds, including doctors and nurses accused of treating injured revolutionaries.\n<\/p>\n
Bahrainis say they will continue holding demonstrations until their demand for the establishment of a democratically elected government is met.\n<\/p>\n
MKA\/HMV
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