Two dead in Saudi town ‘siege’ against Shia militants

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At least two people have died in the Saudi Arabian town of Awamiyah after six days of fierce clashes between the security forces and Shia militants.

Roadblocks were put in place on roads leading into the town on Saturday, the fifth day of ‘siege like’ conditions in the ancient neighbourhood of Almosara, and sporadic bursts of gunfire could be heard, local media and AFP news agency reported.

Saudi Arabia’s eastern province has a large Shia population and since 2011’s Arab Spring calls for equality between Sunni and Shia citizens there have been several episodes of violence between protesters and the state.

Awamiyah was also the home of Nimr al-Nimr, an influential Shia cleric who was executed on terrorism charges last year. His death led to demonstrations worldwide and attacks on the Saudi embassy in Iran.

The Kingdom’s authorities said on Friday that workers on a controversial redevelopment project in the 400-year-old Almosara neighbourhood “came under fire and their vehicles were targeted by explosives” by “terrorists”.

The militants were trying “to jeopardise the project and protect their terrorist activities that they launch from the abandoned houses in the neighbourhood,“ a statement said.

The dead were a two-year-old Saudi boy and Pakistani national caught in the crossfire, the interior ministry continued.

Three more deaths were reported by Saudi media, but have not yet been confirmed by the government. At least 14 people have been wounded, including four foreign nationals and four police officers.

The neighbourhood has been sealed off because of the fighting. Residents inside say that they are relying on private generators for electricity and in some cases the water mains supply has been switched off.

Pictures widely circulated on social media show special forces trying to evacuate residents to elsewhere in the town as well as abandoned bulldozers and other construction equipment.

Cars, fire engines and ambulances were not being allowed in or out of the area, Ameen Nemer, an activist originally from Awamiyah, told Middle East Eye.

“It's really hard for people and you can imagine these army vehicles, they would open fire like 24 hours. People can't sleep. You have these vehicles going back to where they come and then you have new ones come to replace these soldiers,” he said.

Last month the UN accused Saudi Arabia of attempting to forcibly remove residents from Almosara without offering adequate resettlement options. The planned renovations threatened the “historical and cultural heritage of the town with irreparable harm,“ the office of the UN’s high commissioner for human rights said.