Bahrain opposition groups and Shiite clerics protested Monday against the detention of opposition leader Sheikh Ali Salman by the Sunni authorities in the small but strategic Gulf state.

News of the arrest of the Al-Wefaq leader drew hundreds of his supporters onto the streets of Shiite villages outside the capital Manama late on Sunday, prompting clashes with security forces.

Police fired tear gas and birdshot to disperse the protesters, many of whom had gathered in Salman’s home village of Bilad al-Qadeem, witnesses said.

A Bahraini protestor runs for cover from tear gas during clashes with riot police following a protest against the arrest of the head of the banned Shiite opposition movement Al-Wefaq on December 28, 2014 in Bilad al-Qadeem, a suburb of Manama ©Mohammed al-Shaikh (AFP)

There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Salman’s detention is “an escalating step that targets social stability and civil peace in Bahrain,” said a statement of opposition groups led by Al-Wefaq.

“The Bahraini Authority is moving backward to a police-state instead of taking steps towards a political solution and an end to the serious human rights violations against citizens,” said a statement.

On Monday, clerics gathered in Imam al-Sadeq mosque in Al-Guful village, brandishing photographs of the detained opposition leader, pictures posted on Al-Wefaq’s Twitter account showed.

The party has demanded Salman’s immediate release, calling his detention “a dangerous adventure that will complicate the political situation in Bahrain”.

Several rights groups also condemned the arrest of Salman, while the radical February 14 Coalition called for more protests Monday in Bilad al-Qadeem.

– ‘Insult to people’ –

Top Shiite clerics issued a statement late Sunday slamming the questioning of Salman as a “huge insult to the whole people.”

Four main clerics, including Isa al-Qassem, considered the spiritual leader of Al-Wefaq, said summoning Salman does not demonstrate a “wise political reasoning,” warning that harming Salman “amounts to harming the whole population.”

The Gulf kingdom, which is ruled by the Sunni Al-Khalifa dynasty but has a mainly Shiite population, has been gripped by sporadic violence ever since the authorities crushed month-long protests led by Al-Wefaq in 2011.

At least 89 people have been killed in clashes with security forces, and hundreds have been arrested and put on trial, human rights groups say.

Strategically located just across the Gulf from Iran, Bahrain is home base of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet and Britain announced plans earlier this month to build a naval base of its own.

Bahrain is also a partner in the US-led coalition carrying out air strikes against the Islamic State group in Syria.

But authorities have rejected Al-Wefaq’s demand for an elected prime minister to replace the current government dominated by the ruling family.

Al-Wefaq’s announcement that it would boycott a November parliamentary election it dismissed as a farce was followed by a court order banning the party in late October.

Authorities have been tight-lipped about Salman’s whereabouts since summoning him for questioning on Sunday about “violating certain aspects of the law”.

But Salman’s lawyer, Abdullah al-Shamlan, tweeted that his client had been arrested and accused of “inciting hatred against the regime and calling for its overthrow by force”.

He said he had not been allowed to attend Salman’s questioning.

Shamlan said the Al-Wefaq leader was also accused of “insulting the judiciary and the executive branch”, of “sectarian incitement”, of “spreading false news likely to cause panic and undermine security” and “participation in events detrimental to the economy”.

Salman was re-elected as party leader on Friday and marked the occasion by leading a protest march outside the capital.

Meanwhile, a Manama court sentenced Monday two Shiites to death and a third to life in jail after condemning them of killing a policeman. Nine others were jailed six years each over involvement in the explosion that killed the policeman, BNA state news agency said.

News of the arrest of the Al-Wefaq leader drew hundreds of his supporters onto the streets of Shiite villages outside the capital Manama late on Sunday, prompting clashes with security forces ©Mohammed al-Shaikh (AFP/File)

Bahraini protestors face riot policemen during clashes following a protest against the arrest of the head of the banned Shiite opposition movement Al-Wefaq, Sheikh Ali Salman in Bilad al-Qadeem, a suburb of Manama on December 28, 2014 ©Mohammed Al-Shaikh (AFP)

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