US turning blind eye to Al Khalifah crimes: Commentator

Press TV has conducted an interview with Imam Mohammad Ali Elahi, the director of Islamic House of Wisdom from Michigan, to discuss the Bahraini regime's crackdown on dissent.

A rough transcription of the interview appears below.

Press TV: It seems that the Bahraini government is becoming extremely liberal with the use of this practice of revoking citizenships. We've seen this happening just right now specifically of course sparking anger when they revoked the citizenship of Sheikh Isa Qassim. Now why do you think that the Bahraini regime is doing so right now? it seems that there's a concerted effort to increase the pressure on the pro-democracy movement in Bahrain.

Elahi: Unfortunately this is happening in the holy month of Ramadan, month of freedom and peace and revelation and this injustice to a peaceful opposition looks like Al Khalifah like their partner Al Saud continue to drive this dangerous direction and I would say if anyone deserves his or her citizenship to be canceled should be Al Khalifah family not somebody like Sheikh Isa Qassim who was born in Bahrain and he is a peaceful man, a voice of unity and freedom and justice. So, it looks like the continuation of criminal crackdown on a community in Bahrain by a regime that is really sick, is a working of tyranny and terrorism and torture against their own people. I mean how can you have a country without citizens and especially honorable people.

These are the same guys, the same regime that bring people from other countries and they hire them and they give them citizenship but then they deprive the original people and the real citizens of the country of their citizenships. So, it is very shameful and also for our administration Obama our message to Obama is that it is embarrassing to have close allies and friends like Al Khalifah and Al Saud is very shameful. These are the most oppressive regimes in the entire world and at the same time they are the closest friends and allies to United States.

Press TV: When you speak of the US government's relationship with the regime in Bahrain for example we do know that the US’ 5th Fleet is stationed in Bahrain. Do you think that the US government has done enough to put pressure on the Al Khalifah regime to give in to the pressure that is being applied by this pro-democracy movement or do you think that the US is just as complicit in this oppression?

Elahi: Exactly. I mean it is  just to say well we are concerned about what the Al Khalifah is doing is not enough just to express concern. We are dealing with a regime that chooses nothing for the citizens. The palaces are for the Al Khalifah but the prisons for the people, pleasure for the regime but paying for the people. Security and service for the regime but suffering and poverty and paying for the people. A regime that has zero relationship with people, zero respect, zero democracy, zero tolerance and the US government does see all this hypocrisy and crime against the citizens of Bahrain and at the same time tolerates this injustice and this oppression. That's not acceptable at all. So, we are doing whatever we can to the media in this country to bring awareness and I hope that the people in the Middle East also rise up to their responsibility. Although it is selfish for me to say such a thing because here we can oppose the government and we can criticize the government but there is no such a right for the people in Bahrain or in Saudi Arabia and it is selfish to say that but they are very very unfortunate.

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