MANAMA: Bahrain’s public prosecutor has charged the head of the main Shia opposition group with insulting the interior ministry, state news agency BNA said yesterday, in a move that could further unsettle the Gulf island state.

Sheikh Ali Salman, secretary-general of the Al Wefaq Islamic Association, was the most senior opposition figure charged since majority Shias began protests in 2011 to demand political reform and a greater role in running the country. 

Minister of State for Information Affairs Samira Rajab said the Wefaq leader was suspected of “denigrating and disparaging the interior ministry” by alleging human rights violations by the police against protesters.

Ali Salman was released on Sunday after five hours of interrogation about an opposition display which Bahraini authorities closed down last week, saying it was illegal and incited hatred.

The Arab kingdom, strategically located between Saudi Arabia and regional rival Iran, has been dogged by unrest since security forces quelled the 2011 protests.

“After questioning Ali Salman, secretary general of the al-Wefaq society, the general prosecution decided to release him … after filing charges of insulting the interior ministry,” BNA said on its website.Reuters