Anti-Israeli Rally Held in Saudi Arabia’s Shiite-Populated City
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – As the Riyadh regime has laid a military siege to residents of al-Awamiyah in the kingdom’s Eastern Province, the Shiite Muslims managed to stage a rally in the city to mark the International Quds Day.
The Shiites in Awamiyah on Friday joined the rallies held across the world on the occasion of the International Quds Day.
During the rally in Awamiyah, the demonstrators carried pictures of the al-Aqsa Mosque in the occupied Palestinian territories and a mosque in the Saudi city that was recently attacked by the Saudi regime forces.
Earlier last month, the Saudi security forces began to carry out attacks on the residents of al-Awamiyah as part of its clampdown on Shiite Muslims.
Al-Awamiyah, a town of 30,000 in the Shiite-majority Qatif district, was the home of Nimr al-Nimr, a Shiite cleric put to death in January last year over trumped-up charges.
The Shiite-populated Eastern Province has been the scene of peaceful demonstrations since February 2011. Protesters have been demanding reforms, freedom of expression, the release of political prisoners, and an end to economic and religious discrimination against the oil-rich region.
The protests have been met with a heavy-handed crackdown by the regime.
Each year, the International Quds Day is celebrated across the world on the last Friday of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.
The event’s raison d'être is renewing support for the Palestinians and denunciation of Israel.
The day is also seen as the legacy of the late founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Imam Khomeini, who officially declared the last Friday of the holy month of Ramadan as International Quds Day back in 1979.
