REUTERS: RIYADH - Saudi authorities arrested at least nine Saudi Shi'ite pilgrims after clashes in the holy city of Medina, Shi'ite and security sources said on Tuesday.
Saudi Arabia sees itself as the bastion of mainstream Sunni Islam and is worried about the rising influence of non-Arab Shi'ite power Iran in the region.
Jaafar al-Shaib, a leading figure among minority Saudi Shi'ites, said clashes occurred between Shi'ite pilgrims and morals police near a mosque that houses the tomb of Prophet Mohammad.
"Some 1,500 Shi'ite pilgrims gathered near the mosque for the commemoration of Prophet Mohammad's death," he said.
"Stick-wielding members of the morals police backed up by plainclothes policemen sought to disperse them."
Morals police often prevent pilgrims venerating tombs, seen as idolatry under the strict Saudi version of Islam.
Some pilgrims were injured in a stampede after police fired into the air to disperse the crowd, al-Shaib said, adding ambulances took some away. He said some shops owned by Shi'ites were attacked. >>> Reporting by Souhail Karam; editing by Thomas Atkins and Michael Roddy | Tuesday, February 24, 2009
MSNBC: Saudi Cleric Calls for End to Anti-Shiite Actions
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - A prominent Shiite cleric in Saudi Arabia appealed to King Abdullah to put an end to "extremist practices and insults" by members of the religious police against Shiite pilgrims following a series of incidents at a revered cemetery.
Sheik Hassan al-Saffar's posted the appeal on his Web site Monday, following reports of several incidents of confrontations between Shiites and riot police at the al-Baqee Cemetery in Medina, Islam's second-holiest city.
The confrontations aggravate the friction between the overwhelmingly Sunni population and the Shiites, who say they make up 10-15 percent of Saudi Arabia's 22 million people.
Saudi Arabia follows the severe Wahhabi interpretation of Sunni Islam that considers Shiites infidels. Shiites routinely complain of discrimination, including being banned from joining the religious police. >>> By Donna Abu-Nasr | Associated Press | Tuesday, February 24, 2009
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