Yesterday , the Interior Ministry of Bahrain revoked Bahraini citizenship of Sheikh Issa Ahmed Qassem, the largest Shiite authority(Marja) in the country, and an agent for Ali Khamenei, Supreme Leader of Iran (Al-Murshed), in Bahrain. The statement , issued by the Bahraini Interior Ministry , made it clear the reasons that pushed to revoke citizenship of top Shiite cleric Sheikh Isa Qassim for promoting sectarianism and violence, where it was stated that Issa Kassim “« adopted a theocracy, and stressed the absolute allegiance to the clergy during the speeches and fatwa issued by him exploiting the religious pulpit used in political affairs to serve foreign interests, He encouraged sectarianism and violence. As his decisions and positions are dictated by religious obligation through constant communication with the external organizations that are enemies of the kingdom , and collect funds without obtaining any license, contrary to the text of the law. » The statement noted that Issa Qassem «work on the hit of the concept of the rule of law, especially to control of the elections by fatwas in terms of participation and the boycott and Options of the voters, and subject the political participation to the religious platform (minber ) , and this is extended to all aspects of public affairs, without regard for any legal controls.»
The statement added that Qasim has mobilized many groups to disrupt the issuance of the second section of the Family Law ( Jaafari part)». Bahrain’s Interior Ministry stressed that Issa Qassem «caused the damage to the supreme interests of the country and he did not comply with the duty of loyalty to the country», so the Cabinet decided to approve the drop of Bahraini citizenship about him . the ministry warned to « safeguard the security of the Kingdom and the safety of its people and to achieve a better life for all citizens and consolidate more achievements in all fields, is the first priority. Citizenship is rights and duties, everyone should be committed to it , and no one is above the law or outside the framework of accountability ».
Because the sectarian dimension represents one of the main dimensions of the Iranian regime in dealing with Arab countries, especially Gulf states, and because the Arab-Iranian relations are also undergoing the most serious pitfalls, it has been responded in a hurry to the statement of the Bahraini Interior Ministry statement issued by Qasim Sulaimani commander of the Qods Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards that could be described as “non-sense statement” from the ethical, legal and political aspect , noting that the reader of this statement can easily be reached to that conclusion. The first of this moral bankruptcy is revealed clearly in his statement, when he shows the intensity of his pain for the Bahraini brothers! By saying, “The Muslim people and the oppressed in Bahrain, suffering for many years of injustice, discrimination, humiliation and violence against humanity at the hands of Al Khalifa regime.” But what about the national and sectarian discrimination practiced by the Iranian regime against the Kurds and Baluchistan and the Sunni in Iran, but does Qassem Soleimani know that there is injustice and humiliation and political , social and economic repression to those of Iranian components, as Iran’s record on human rights violations do not serve him to pretend sympathy with his Bahraini brothers! Because the deprived has nothing to offer .However, just if this sempathy with sectarian character not love him, but to the requirements of Iranian politics.
Qassem Soleimani sees in his statement that Issa Ahmed Qassem arrest is “illegal” and that the arrest “is a red line that to exceed it will ignite fire in Bahrain and the region,” adding that it will be the beginning of “an uprising” This part of the statement is a blatant interference in the internal affairs and a clear violation of the Charter of United Nations, does Qassem Soleimani allow others to interfere in Iran’s affairs and to comment on the provisions of the executions, which are issued on a daily basis against the Sunni component in Iran ?! Answer No. Because there are a stable legal rules of general international law and the Charter of the United Nations reluctant to intervene in the internal affairs of other countries, so the Iranian regime has no legal right above these legal rules to protect the Shia world, simply because it is not his legal responsibility. If so, why the Iranian regime stood with “Christian” Armenia” in its conflict with” Shiite” Azerbaijan on their conflict on “Norcarbach” territory.
The use of Qassem Soleimani, the phrase “an bloody uprising” is threatening the political system and the Bahraini people to pay for dropping the citizenship of Issa Ahmed Qassem, and it opens the door to sectarian conflict between Sunni and Shia of the Bahrain Kingdom that will bring it to a civil war may have dire consequences not wanted by everyone who is keen on the stability of the kingdom . The Iranian regime emphasized in each occasion his tutelage on the Shiite Arabs in terms of belonging to one religious community , and confirm the mentality of exporting the revolution in dealing with the Arab states, through the planting sleeper cells in some Arab countries through its political and military organizations like Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen and militias in Iraq. This statement by the Iranian regime would increase the state’s political and sectarian tensions in the region and will increase the state of sectarian division in Arab societies.
This statement clearly seeks to use the region’s Shiites and employment of them within the Iranian regime’s plans to revive the sectarian political discourse and marketing it .Iran’s policies of sectarianism in Lebanon, Iraq, Bahrain and Syria will deepen Iran’s Arab differences and that would flare the region with sectarian wars that do not serve Arab and Iran because these wars do not achieve the aspirations of peoples .the result is chaos, not for dignity and freedom.
It is therefore best to achieve Arab-Iranian dialogue, and Arabic Iranian conformity precedes the American Russian consensus which is the main task, that ‘s the point in which .The diagnosis of the disease before the medication. And Iran, which was able to reach an agreement with the “Great Satan” on issues considered at one time as sovereign issues, they can deal with the Arab countries, and Saudi Arabia which presented a peace initiative in 2002, to settle the Arab-Israeli conflict, which can provide a common vision to live with Iran in the region on conditions that the political , geographical facts assure us and always that cooperation and convergence or compete is much better than conflict and rivalry.And much better than threats and intimidation of Qassem Soleimani to the Kingdom of Bahrain.
Although the inflaming speech of Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Qods Force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, there is no other solution. It must be agreed on the issues of the region, so the Iranian should give up about his expansionary policies that made his interest based on the division of Arab societies in sectarian ways, and support for armed militias against any Arab country in which Iran can achieve it in, including the contradiction and struggle with the logic of the state itself; and so Arab states to give up the dream of the overthrow of the Iranian regime. this is not its function. The democratic change is the task of communities and peoples, noting that the difficulty of this task in the Arab Mashreq has become a proverbial with the existence of sectarian division and militia polarization fueled by regional conflict. This topic is strongly present, and influential to the point of preventing to be ignored. The historical animosity and determination to stay resident in ancient history, which dates back to five centuries, does not help in extinguishing the fire of hostility between the two sides, and turn to wars between nations and between the Islamic peoples themselves .Something that requires different political, cultural and intellectual elements that can come out of these relationships from its inflamed furnace .
Rawabet Center for Research and Strategic Studies