Bahrain police summon Al Wefaq head

Manama: Bahrain police have summoned the head of the main Shiite opposition group Al Wefaq for questioning on Sunday, a source at the interior ministry said on Saturday.

The ministry source had no details of what the questioning of Wefaq secretary-general Shaikh Ali Salman was about.

Al Wefaq’s website confirmed the summons but said the reasons had not been revealed. “It is believed to be part of the political blackmail and revenge against the peaceful opposition that is asking for democracy,” it said in a statement.

The deputy leader of Wefaq, Khalil Al Marzouq, was arrested in September and is now on trial on charges that include inciting terrorism, although he has since been freed temporarily until his next hearing on November 18.

His arrest prompted Al Wefaq to suspend its participation in talks with the government aimed at ending continued Shiite opposition protests.

Bahraini authorities also shut and dismantled an exhibition on anti-government protests staged by Wefaq on Wednesday, saying it violated the law and incited hatred.

Talks between the government and its opponents began in February but have failed to resolve the political crisis, with the two sides still mistrustful and apparently far apart on the opposition’s main demand for an elected government.

Al Wefaq, which says it advocates non-violent methods, demands a constitutional monarchy with a government chosen from within a democratically elected parliament.