Bahrain Mirror: A Bahraini court sentenced on Thursday (March 17, 2022) Shiite cleric Sheikh Mohammed Al-Madi to one year in prison over offending the Umayyad ruler Muawiya bin Abi Sufyan.

Sheikh Al-Madi was reviewing ancient Islamic history, presented the biography of Muawiya ibn Abu Sufyan, and criticized him, which the Bahraini authorities considered to be a "Sahabi".

The authorities pursue Shiite clerics for criticizing historical figures from more than 1,000 years ago, over exercising freedom of belief.

Human rights groups say the authorities have gone from politically targeting the Shiite majority to pursuing them for their religious practices and holding events and rituals they have been practicing for hundreds of years.

Arabic Version