Manama, Nov 25 (IANS) Bahraini security forces raided the house of a prominent Shia cleric here Tuesday amid an ongoing crackdown on dissent, a media report said.

Regime forces raided the property of Ayatollah Sheikh Issa Ahmed Qassem, the spiritual leader of the opposition Al Wefaq party, just a few days after people voted in the first parliamentary elections since the 2011 protests, Press TV reported.

Opposition groups, led by the Al Wefaq, boycotted the parliamentary elections claiming that the Shia majority in Bahrain was discriminated by the Sunni monarchy and that the parliament was subject to the king’s wishes and lacks any real power.

Since mid-February 2011, thousands of protesters have held numerous demonstrations in the streets of Bahrain, calling for the royal family to give up power.

Bahrain has been severely criticised by human rights groups for its harsh crackdown on anti-government protesters.

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