Senior cleric urges Riyadh to punish al-Ahsa attackers

Qom, Nov 9, IRNA – Grand Ayatollah Naser Makarem Shirazi on Sunday urged Riyadh to punish those involved in the massacre of Shiite mourners in al-Ahsa district. Masked gunmen stormed a mourning procession marking Ashura, the martyrdom anniversary of Imam Hussein (AS), the third Shia Imam, in al-Dalwah, and opened fire as people were observing Ashura, the 10th day of the lunar month of Muharram. The Ayatollah who is a spiritual guide for many Shia Muslims, made the remarks while condemning the killing of Shia Muslims during a mourning procession marking Ashura in the eastern city of al-Ahsa on November 4 by Takfiri groups. Seven Shia mourners, including children, were killed in the terrorist attack. Another person had been also gunned down by the assailants in a neighboring village as they hijacked his car to use it in the attack. Saudi authorities have accused al-Qaeda militants for the attack. Saudi Arabia's Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz al-Sheikh has strongly condemned the attack and called on Saudi authorities to immediately arrest and punish those involved in the attack. Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi welcomed the move by the Saudi grand mufti stressing that identifying perpetuators of the massacre should not be very difficult for the Saudi government. The Ayatollah hoped that security would be soon provided for Shiite Muslims in Saudi Arabia noting that otherwise, Shiites of the world would react to the massacre./end