Regime forces in Bahrain have launched a massive attack on the house of a respected cleric to arrest anti-regime protesters.

The raid on Tuesday came hours after Manama regime forces fired shots at people attending a sit-in in Diraz, a town near the capital where Ayatollah Sheikh Issa Qassem, the most senior Shia cleric in Bahrain, is based.

A security source said six people were arrested during the raid on Sheikh Qassem's house. The source said the people were wanted for security offenses. Officials did not elaborate whether Sheikh Qassem was among those arrested.

