MANAMA: Bahrain’s top Shiite cleric Sheikh Isa Qassim left Manama for treatment in London on Monday following a deterioration in his health, his aides said. Qassim was allowed to fly out of the country using a temporary passport — valid for one year — issued on the orders of Bahrain’s king, the aides said.

Bahrain’s foreign minister tweeted Friday that the country’s monarch had ordered the “facilitation of travel” for the cleric to seek treatment abroad. The Bahraini king also offered to cover the cost of “any treatment required,” the minister added. Qassim’s health has for months been a point of contention between authorities and the Qassim family.