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Protests and public displays are strictly forbidden. Increasingly Saudis are expressing public anger anyway. July 9 provided another reason. Prominent Shiite cleric Shaikh Nimr al-Nimr was arrested after being shot in the leg.
He was wanted for sedition. Police confronted him. Saudi state media said:
"When the aforementioned person and those with him tried to resist the security men and initiated shooting and crashed into one of the security patrols while trying to escape, he was dealt with in accordance with the situation and responded to in kind and arrested after he was wounded in his thigh."
Interior Ministry spokesman Major General Mansour Turki was cited as the source.
Allegedly he sparked Awamiya village protests. Thousands participated. Security forces confronted them. Numerous injuries and arrests followed.
Al-Nimr's brother said he was wanted for his political views. He supported Shiite issues and spoke out prominently. He demanded long denied rights. As a result, he was targeted. Twice before (in 2004 and 2006) he was arrested and detained.
In January 2008, he spoke publicly for creating a "righteous opposition front." He represents views growing numbers of Saudis support. As a result, he and others like him threaten established rule.
Increasingly the House of Saud resembles a house of cards. Royal family members and Washington allies are worried. They have good reason.
After winter 2011 Bahraini protests erupted, similar ones began in the Kingdom's Eastern Province. "Iron Fist" repression confronted them. Nonetheless, they continue and spread.
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