Saudi protesters have staged another anti-regime demonstration in the Eastern Province to demand the release of prominent Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr.
Scores of Saudis took to the streets in the town of Awamiyah on Tuesday to express support for Sheikh Nimr, who has been in custody since last July.
He was shot and arrested by regime forces for criticizing the country’s ruling family.
His family members, after being allowed to visit him in prison, said he has been badly tortured in jail. Nimr’s sister has recently said through her Twitter account that prison authorities are denying her brother medical care.
Since February 2011, protesters have held demonstrations on an almost regular basis in the Kingdom’s east, mainly in Qatif and Awamiyah, calling for the release of all political prisoners, freedom of expression and assembly, and an end to widespread discrimination.
However, the demonstrations turned into protests against the repressive Al Saud regime, especially since November 2011, when Saudi security forces killed five protesters and injured many others in the oil-rich region.
