Bahraini Court Bans Opposition Party

A Bahraini court banned al-Wefaq National Islamic Society ahead next month parliamentary elections in the Persian Gulf monarchy.

News ID: 60951

Date: 28 October 2014 - 16:00

According to the ruling, the main opposition party will be banned from political activities for three months.

The ban came after al-Wefaq National Islamic Society boycotted next month parliamentary elections.

The opposition party has announced that the upcoming vote will be undemocratic and will only give credit to the Al Khalifa rule.

Secretary General of the party Sheikh Ali Salman said holding the election will only deepen the political crisis in the Persian Gulf monarchy.

He described holding “real” dialog with the opposition groups, implementing political reforms as the only way to tackle the crisis in the country.

Earlier this month, Bahrainis held protests across the country, calling for the boycott of upcoming general elections scheduled to take place next month.

The vote will be the first since protests started in Bahrain in 2011.

Since mid-February 2011, thousands of protesters have held numerous demonstrations in the streets of Bahrain, calling on the Al Khalifa royal family to step down from power.

The protesters have also slammed the Manama regime’s arrest and torture of the political activists, demanding their release.

In March 2011, troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were deployed to Bahrain to help Manama quash the anti-regime protests.

Many Bahrainis have been killed and hundreds of others injured and arrested in the ongoing crackdown on peaceful demonstrations.

Source: Tasnim