Al-Wasat: Bahrain shiite council boycotts Islamic affairs minister

The Bahraini daily al-Wasat said yesterday that Shiite men of religion, founders of a new council called "the secular Islamic council" refused to attend a meeting with the minister of Islamic affairs Abdullah Bin Khaled al-Khaleifa after the latter announced that the formation of this council is "a violation to the constitution" and called on its founder to join the Higher Council for Islamic Affairs.

The paper said that men of religion among the founders of the council decided after a meeting they held on Tuesday to discuss a message from the ministry rejecting to attend a meeting invited for by the minister considering that responding to the call means having to deal with the Higher Council for Islamic Affairs." The paper added that the founder of the secular council consider that "dealing with the Higher Council for the Islamic Affairs is "a suspicious jurisprudence" but they stressed they are ready to meet under certain conditions, according to the paper.

A source close to the council said that this council "is not a frame for the Shiite community rather for the country as a whole," adding that the council aims to "maintain a social religious role in the first place and provides services to people regardless to their sectarian or other affiliation." The source indicated that the council which includes 80 Shiite clergy was established one week ago and elected Sheikh Issa Qasem as its chairman.