Opposition figure faces jail

A Bahraini court sentenced the country’s leading Shiite Muslim opposition figure to four years in prison amid a crackdown on dissent in the island kingdom.

Sheik Ali Salman, a key figure in the 2011 uprising against the Sunni Muslim monarchy, was convicted of insulting the Interior Ministry, which oversees police, inciting others to break the law and inciting hatred against naturalized Sunni citizens, many of whom are of South Asian descent and serve in the security forces.

However, the court found Salman not guilty of the most serious charge, inciting violence and calling for the overthrow of the monarchy, which carried a potential life sentence. His defense lawyer, Abdullah Shamlawi, said Salman can appeal.

Salman, 49, secretarygeneral of the Wefaq political opposition group, was ar- rested in late December. The charges against him stem from speeches he made from 2012 to 2014.