Saturday 2 January 2016

Sheikh Baqar al-Nimr- Execution or Assassination?

Sheikh Baqar al-Nimr

Dr.Mazhar Naqvi

Saudi Government has not ‘executed’ but assassinated prominent Imami cleric Sheikh Baqar al-Nimr. His state-sponsored ‘murder’ deserves to be condemned in the most severe term. It is essential so as to prevent Saudi regime from carrying out more executions to crush pro-democratic figures in the name of religion or treason. By killing Sheikh Nimr in defiance of international appeals for his release, Saudi government has sent a clear message to the world that it is least bothered for Muslim unity and world peace. The widespread condemnation and protests over his killing throughout the Muslim world is pointer to just one fact-the sectarian strife between two dominant factions  of Muslims will escalate in days to come and dead Sheikh may prove  to be more lethal to ‘House of Sauds’. The entire world knows that Nimr had become a high-profile thorn in the flesh of Saudi Kingdom by emerging as the most vocal voice of anti-government protests. The police had arrested him 2012 from Qatif region after an alleged exchange of fire. He was charged with instigating unrest and undermining the national security, making anti-government speeches and defending political prisoners. In 2014, a Saudi court sentenced him to death. The sentence was upheld in March 2015 and confirmed in October last even as Amnesty International repeatedly declared the “appalling” trial “deeply flawed” and called for immediate quashing of the death penalty.

Kashmiris Staging demonstration Against Nimr's 'Execution'.
The world needs to analyze the reactions over the ‘execution’ without any prejudice or bias. The international forums should not perceive the accusation of Ayatollah Nasser Makarem Shirazi as an obvious one that Saudi regime committed the ‘crime’ of killing Sheikh after taking White House into confidence .No doubt, Iran is the main rival of Saudi Arabia but it should not be forgotten that Tehran opposes Riyadh for following blindly US, Zionists and funding terrorist outfits. Saudi also accuses Iran of similar charges but had no excuse to justify non-inclusion of Iran in its anti-terrorism coalition announced last month.
It is tragic that the Muslim world is divided over the issue. Pro-Saudi governments in United Arab Emirates (UAE) have justified the killing of Sheikh whereas Iran has reiterated that Riyadh     supports terrorist movements and extremists, but confronts domestic critics with oppression and execution...the Saudi Government will pay a high price for following these policies."Iraq’s former Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has predicted to the extent that Sheikh’s death will mark the end of Saudi regime”. The prediction is not just a reaction but somewhat genuine analysis of what has been happening in Saudia in the past several years. In 2015, Riyadh carried out record number of executions.The country executed 47 prisoners on the second day of 2016,including Sheikh Nimr.At world level, Saudia is always portrayed as the backbone of barbaric organizations like Boko Haram, Daesh and Tafkirs. The eastern part of the kingdom has been witnessing mass movement against the regime under the leadership of Sheikh Nimr. His growing popularity ultimately resulted in his assassination. But it would be wrong to assume that his blood won’t evoke serious repercussions. Apprehending violent protests in Qatif, Saudi authorities have already deployed troops but even then supporters of Nimr took to streets. Similar scenes were witnessed in Bahrain where Police had to use tear shells to disperse the protestors.    

Protests In Bahrain

It is high time for all Muslims believing in unity to condemn Sheikh’s alleged execution. They should also offer condolences to his bereaved family. Muslims need to remember that ever since ‘House of Sauds’ have occupied the kingdom, unity among Muslims have remained a distant dream. It has used the revenue generated from petrol to ignite fire to Muslim ‘Ittehad’. They have floated fanaticism in the name of purifying Islam without letting the world know as to who gave them license to shatter the peaceful co-existence of Muslims for centuries despite theological differences? While Muslim world seems to be on tenterhook, among the western countries, Germany has expressed concern in guarded language over the ‘execution’ and reaffirmed country’s view that death sentence is inhuman form of punishment. Rest of the western world is maintaining strange silence or may be awaiting signal from US and reaction of Russia that is taking head on Washington in Middle East. The most relevant comment on the ‘execution’ of Sheikh who has already been declared as a ‘holy warrior’ by Houthis, has come from Boumedouha, Deputy Director of Amnesty International, Middle East and North Africa Program: ‘The death sentence against Sheikh Nimr Baqar al-Nimr is part of a campaign by the authorities in Saudi Arabia to crush all dissent, including those defending the rights of the Kingdom’s minority Muslim community,”. The circumstances leading to Sheikh’s killing needs to be examined in the light of Amnesty’s remark to unravel the mystery as to why Saudia ‘executed’ him a week after opening its embassy in Iraq after a gap of 25- years.(The article is based on the inputs taken from various sources on the net after 'execution' of the popular cleric.Photo Courtesy Google Images)  

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