Saudi Forces Arrest Shiite Man on Anti-Regime Protests

Saudi security forces arrested a man believed to belong to a Shiite Muslim group blamed for participating in anti-regime demonstration in the country’s Eastern Province, as the Saudi king died.

Montadhar Ali Saleh Alsbaitiin was arrested on Thursday night in Awamiya, a Shiite village that has been the focal point of unrest since protests in early 2011 that called for an end to discrimination and for democratic reforms in the Sunni-ruled monarchy, Reuters reported.

In Saudi Arabia, protests and political gatherings of any kind are prohibited.

Since February 2011, protesters have held demonstrations on an almost regular basis in Saudi Arabia, mainly in Qatif and Awamiyah, primarily calling for the release of all political prisoners, freedom of expression and assembly, and an end to widespread discrimination.