“In the aftermath of the arrest … a limited number of people have
assembled in the town of Awamiya,” the Interior Ministry statement
said. “Gun shots have been overheard in random areas of the town.
However, there was no security confrontation whatsoever.”
Nimr, seen as a leading radical cleric, was hurt in an accident as security
forces chased his car, the Interior Ministry said on Sunday, adding that he
was accused of “sedition”.
Activists from the Eastern Province, where most of Saudi Arabia’s Shi’ites
live, posted pictures on the internet of a grey-bearded man they identified
as Nimr inside a vehicle.
He was covered with what appeared to be a bloodstained white blanket.
Shi’ites say they struggle to get government jobs or university places, that
their neighbourhoods suffer underinvestment, and that their places of
worship are often closed down. The government denies charges of
discrimination.
Source: Reuters