Ashura 2025: Bahrain’s Tolerance Does Not Extend to Its Shiite Citizens
Bahrain Press Association, Saturday, July 12, 2025 – London, UK: Each year, Shiite citizens in Bahrain commemorate Ashura, the most significant season for the Shiite community, which constitutes the largest segment of the country’s citizens. This event, which marks the martyrdom of Imam Hussein ibn Ali, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, is a religious, spiritual, and social occasion. Yet every year, Ashura becomes a true test of the state’s commitment to religious freedom and freedom of belief and expression.
Despite repeated official statements regarding respect for “freedom of religious practice,” the reality on the ground reveals a recurring pattern of systematic repression and discrimination, particularly when the rituals concern the Shiite community، highlighting a stark contradiction between rhetoric and practice.
Since the outbreak of widespread protests in 2011 and the resulting political and security crisis, the state’s relationship with the Shiite community has taken a rigid security-oriented turn. Thousands of Shiite citizens have been arrested, many others live in exile, and the space for public freedoms (especially religious and political) has shrunk to its lowest point. This securitized context has enveloped Ashura itself, which for over a decade has faced tight surveillance and become an arena for violations of religious freedom.
A Promising Meeting, Then Disappointing Results
On the eve of Ashura 2025, the Minister of Interior, Sheikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa, held a meeting with dozens of Shiite matam (congregation hall) leaders. Though the meeting is held annually, this year it took on a different tone. The minister spoke of the history of Bahraini matams, noting they are older than their counterparts in Iran, a comment initially perceived as official recognition of the Shiite community’s historical roots in Bahrain and a positive signal for a harassment-free Ashura.
However, this recognition carried an implicit political message: a strong emphasis that the rituals must remain “free from politics”, a clear indication of the government’s desire to confine religious activities within strict security controls.
On June 25, just before the season began, security forces raided Al-Duraz area (Northern Governorate) and removed licensed Ashura banners and structures using bulldozers, despite residents’ objections.
This raid led to limited confrontations and the arrest of several citizens. One man was hospitalized with a severe head injury. Two days later, authorities imposed a security cordon on the area and barred clerics from entering to give religious lectures, an act viewed as a direct intrusion into the core of the religious ceremony.
Widespread Crackdown and Repeated Summonses
This year’s Ashura saw a broad security campaign involving the summoning and arrest of dozens of preachers and religious chanters (Rawadeed), as well as heads of matams and mourning processions.
Investigations focused on “lecture content” and “political slogans,” including wearing shirts with religious imagery, symbols related to the war in Gaza, or support for Shiite leaders.
Some clerics were summoned merely for recounting historical Ashura stories involving Yazid ibn Muawiya, the second Umayyad caliph, highlighting a new phase of state censorship over religious discourse, even when it pertains to events more than 1,400 years old.
According to the Bahrain Press Association, along with rights reports and testimonies from inside and outside Bahrain, over 60 individuals were summoned by July 7, with some opting to remain anonymous to avoid further targeting. Violations included:
- Removal of Ashura decorations in at least seven areas: Duraz, Sitra, Manama, Juffair, Southern Sehla, Ghuraifa, and Abu Saiba.
- Summoning of eight clerics, including Sheikh Isa Al-Moamen, Sheikh Ali Rahma, Sayyed Mohyeddin Al-Mashaal, and others. Three of them were arrested: Sheikh Isa Al-Moamen, Sheikh Kazem Darwish, and Mulla Hussein Abdulkarim Al-Jamri.
- Summoning of nine religious singers, including Mahdi Suhwan, Ali Hammadi, and others. Two were arrested: Sayyed Mahmood Al-Mousawi and Mujtaba Al-Abed.
- Summoning of matam and mosque administrators from various locations.
- Arrests of citizens for wearing religious or politically themed clothing, including symbols related to Palestine.
- Blockading of Shiite areas and preventing clerics from entering, seen as a direct infringement on religious freedoms.
This report documents 38 confirmed cases based on eyewitness accounts, testimonies from detainees, and validation by rights groups, underscoring the systematic nature of these violations.
Conclusions and Recommendations
The events of Ashura 2025 amount to systematic restriction and targeted violations of religious expression and belief, in breach of Bahrain’s international obligations and its own constitutional provisions.
Discrimination based on sect, and the use of security agencies to suppress peaceful and spiritual religious practices, reflect a political structure unable to accommodate religious diversity within a unified national framework.
The Bahrain Press Association recommends:
- Ceasing all forms of summonses, investigations, and arrests tied to religious practice.
- Ensuring Shiite citizens can conduct their rituals without interference.
- Holding accountable those responsible for violations, especially those involving excessive force.
- Reforming security policies to align with Bahrain’s constitution and international human rights commitments.
- Allowing independent rights organizations to monitor Ashura events and document violations.
| No. | Date | Region/Name | Type of Violation | Notes |
| 1 | June 25 | Diraz | Removal of Ashura decorations (flags, structures, hospitality tents) | Bulldozers used; confrontations with residents |
| 2 | June 25 | Diraz / Hassan Al-Anfooz | Severe head injury to a citizen | Result of confrontations over decoration removal |
| 3 | June 27 | Diraz | Clerics prevented from entering Diraz in the morning due to imposed blockade | Prevented Friday prayers |
| 4 | June 27 | Sitra Island | Removal of Ashura decorations (flags and banners) | Done by security forces and municipal workers |
| 5 | June 27 | Diraz | About 10 citizens summoned for interrogation | Due to hanging Ashura banners, joining protests against decoration removal |
| 6 | June 27 | Diraz / Qasim Mohammed | Youth arrested after being summoned for interrogation | Due to hanging Ashura banners |
| 7 | June 27 | Diraz / Hussein Hilal Khalil | Youth arrested after being summoned for interrogation | Due to hanging Ashura banners |
| 8 | June 28 | Juffair | Removal of Ashura decorations (flags and banners) | By security and municipal forces |
| 9 | June 28 | Southern Sehla | Removal of Ashura decorations (flags and banners) | By security and municipal forces |
| 10 | July 1 | Ghuraifa | Removal of Ashura decorations (flags and banners) | By security and municipal forces |
| 11 | July 2 | Dair / Sheikh Isa Al-Moamen | Ashura lecture; cleric summoned for interrogation | |
| 12 | July 2 | Al-Markh / Sayyed Mahdi Mutham | Minor detained after interrogation | For participating in Ashura activities |
| 13 | July 2 | Al-Markh / Sayyed Mohammed Hashem | Minor detained after interrogation | For participating in Ashura activities |
| 14 | July 3 | Dair / Sheikh Isa Al-Moamen | Cleric detained for 7 days pending investigation | According to public prosecution |
| 15 | July 3 | Sanabis / Mahdi Suhwan | Religious singer summoned for Ashura participation | |
| 16 | July 3 | Ali Hammadi | Religious singer summoned | For Ashura participation |
| 17 | July 3 | Murtadha Al-Basri | Religious singer summoned | For Ashura participation |
| 18 | July 3 | Youssef Al-Qassab | Religious singer summoned | For Ashura participation |
| 19 | July 4 | Al-Aker / Mohammed Ahmed Radhi | Youth arrested for wearing shirt with religious imagery | While leaving a procession in Manama |
| 20 | July 4 | Capital Manama | Participants in Ashura procession pursued for wearing ‘unauthorized’ headbands with religious slogans | |
| 21 | July 4 | Hamad Town / Sheikh Ali Rahma | Mosque Imam summoned for Ashura participation | |
| 22 | July 4 | Hussein Al-Markhi | Activist summoned for interrogation | |
| 23 | July 4 | Capital Manama | Removal of Ashura decorations (flags and banners) | By security and municipal workers |
| 24 | July 4 | Alawi Abu Ghaib | Religious singer summoned for interrogation | For Ashura participation |
| 25 | July 4 | Diraz / Salman Youssef | Head of Ansar Al-Adalah Matam summoned | For holding Ashura events |
| 26 | July 4 | Karzakan / Jassem Mahdi | Head of Karzakan Matam summoned | For holding Ashura events |
| 27 | July 4 | Diraz / Mohammed Al-Shehabi | Citizen arrested for wearing shirt with political and religious imagery | |
| 28 | July 4 | Sayyed Mohyeddin Al-Mashaal | Cleric summoned | For Ashura participation |
| 29 | July 4 | Malkiya / Mohammed BuHumaid | Head of Imam Al-Ridha Matam summoned | For holding Ashura events |
| 30 | July 5 | Diraz / Mohammed Al-Shehabi | Citizen detained for 30 days on ‘terrorism incitement’ charges | For shirt with images/slogans |
| 31 | July 5 | Hamad Town | Management of Al-Zahraa Mosque summoned | For organizing central mourning procession |
| 32 | July 5 | Abdulamir Al-Baladi | Religious singer summoned for interrogation | For Ashura participation |
| 33 | July 5 | Sayyed Jalal Al-Baladi | Religious singer summoned for interrogation | For Ashura participation |
| 34 | July 5 | Sheikh Kazem Darwish | Cleric summoned for interrogation | For Ashura participation |
| 35 | July 6 | Sheikh Maytham Al-Salman | Cleric summoned for interrogation | For Ashura participation |
| 36 | July 6 | Sayyed Mahmoud Al-Mousawi | Religious singer summoned for interrogation | |
| 37 | July 6 | Faisal Al-Moamen | Head of Al-Dair mourning committee summoned | For holding Ashura events |
| 38 | July 6 | Nuaim / Hussein Al-Nashaba | Activist arrested | For Ashura participation |