The move against Ayatollah Hussein Al-Najati — the Bahraini representative of Iraq's most powerful religious figure — follows a wave of arrests in Bahrain since August. Al-Najati is the Bahrain representative for Iraq's Grand Ayatollah Ali Al-Sistani, the country's most influential Shiite preacher.
Pulling the citizenship could set the stage for the eventual expulsion of Al-Najati and his family.
Kuwait stripped activist Yasser Al-Habeeb of his citizenship, accusing him of abusing religious symbols and attempting to trigger sectarian tensions.
More than two weeks ago, Al-Habeeb made disparaging remarks against Ayesha, the wife of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), triggering a sectarian tension that prompted the government to ban all public gatherings on Sunday.
The Kuwaiti Cabinet made the decision on the recommendation of Interior Minister Sheikh Jaber Khaled Al-Sabah, said a government statement that added that Al-Habeeb was also convicted of undermining Kuwait's national interests and social system.
The Cabinet ordered relevant departments to take all necessary measures to bring Al-Habeeb, who has been living in self-exile in London since 2004, to justice for crimes he committed.
In Bahrain, an Interior Ministry statement said the passports for Al-Najati, his wife and three children were revoked because their Bahraini nationality was not obtained “through the appropriate legal means.” Bahraini officials have not elaborated, but it appears that Al-Najati and his family would revert to the “stateless” status that confronted many Bahrainis before political reforms a decade ago. Stateless citizens in Bahrain can travel on special permits similar to those granted to Palestinians living around the Middle East, but they cannot vote and do not receive state assistance such as housing aid.
Al-Najati was born in Bahrain and had his religious education in Iraq and Iran. He and his family obtained Bahraini nationality in 2001 under political reforms by King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa, who also opened the way for parliamentary elections.
King Hamad told a Cabinet meeting Sunday that Bahrain would not be a “springboard” for unrest in the region and called on citizens and authorities to unite in “fighting terrorism so that Bahrain is safe and secure,” Kuwait's official news agency KUNA reported.
Hours before the decision on Al-Najati, Bahraini officials reportedly issued a two-week ban on sermons by another prominent preacher, Sheikh Abdul Jaleel Al-Miqdad, who has denounced the crackdown.
