Bahrain opposition leader cleared of spying for Qatar, having been behind bars since 2014
The charges were laid after Bahrain and its Gulf allies cut ties with Qatar last June over allegations the emirate supported Islamist extremist groups and was too close to Iran
A Bahraini court acquitted the head of the Shiite opposition of all charges on Thursday in his trial for alleged spying for regional rival Qatar, a judicial source and activists said.
Sheikh Ali Salman, head of Bahrain’s largest – and now banned – Shiite opposition group Al-Wefaq was found not guilty along with two of his aides, who were tried in absentia, a judicial source said on condition of anonymity.
Groups including the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy, and the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights, confirmed his acquittal.
“Sheikh Ali Salman was found innocent,” said Sheikh Maytham al-Salman of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights. “We hope this ruling opens the way for dialogue and reconciliation.”
Sheikh Ali has been behind bars since 2014 serving a four-year jail sentence on charges of inciting hatred.
In November, he pleaded not guilty to new charges of communicating with a foreign state to commit acts hostile to the state of Bahrain – specifically Qatar.