Iran general warns Bahrain after Shia cleric stripped of citizenship

BBC ^ | 20 June 2016 | BBC

[Cronos]

The head of Iran's Revolutionary Guards overseas operation arm has warned there could be armed resistance in Bahrain after the Sunni-ruled kingdom stripped a top Shia cleric of his citizenship.

Bahrain accused the cleric of using his position to "serve foreign interests", promoting "sectarianism and violence".

.."The al-Khalifa [rulers of Bahrain] surely know their aggression against Sheikh Isa Qassim is a red line and that crossing it would set Bahrain and the whole region on fire, and it would leave no choice for people but to resort to armed resistance," Gen Soleimani said in a statement released by the semi-official Fars news agency.

The cleric, who holds the religious rank of ayatollah, has backed protests led by the majority Shia community for greater civil and political rights.

..The US state department said it was "alarmed" at the move, adding that it was "unaware of any credible evidence" to support the removal of citizenship.

[Cronos]

Background:

1. Bahrain is a majority Shia country - 70% of the country
2. These, along with the native Christians are descendants of Christian Aramaic speakers
3. The Al-Khalifah family conquered BAhrain in 1782
4. Isa - the name is Arabic for Jesus btw (the previous Emir of Bahrain was also called Sheikh Isa)
5. Isa Qassim was born in Bahrain
6. In 2001 he became an Ayatollah (an expert in Shia quranic studies)
7. Stripping of his nationality leaves him stateless
8. this will be seen as another example of Sunni rulers persecution of the SHia majority

[palmer]

The Shiites live in the slum. The Sunnis live in the nice part of Bahrain which is partly westernized. The Shiites occasionally come out of the slum to hit western targets. There is no hope of reforming Shia Islam thanks to Sunni repression. There is no hope of reforming Sunni Islam thanks to retrograde elements like ISIS.

[baltimorepoet]

Ann Coulter’s idea: conquer them and convert them.