Dec 4, 2017

Bahrain's leading Shiite cleric Sheikh Isa Qassim, a central opposition figure, has been admitted to hospital in critical condition, his family and a rights group said Monday.

Sheikh Qassim, in his late 70s, is a spearhead of Bahrain's opposition movement demanding an elected government in the Shiite-majority kingdom, which has been ruled for more than two centuries by the Sunni Al-Khalifa dynasty.

Qassim was stripped of his citizenship in 2016 on charges that include "serving foreign interests", an allusion to Shiite-ruled Iran. He has been under de facto house arrest ever since.

Nedal al-Salman, acting president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, and a relative of Qassim who requested anonymity both confirmed Qassim was in critical condition.

Authorities allowed his family to transport him to a hospital of their choosing after they declined state-sanctioned medical care.