Religious buildings face closer scrutiny after police announced weapons had been recovered from a Shi'ite community centre, which went up in flames during clashes on February 14.

The Abu Baham Ma'atam, in Sehla, caught fire during clashes between police and rioters who took to the streets on the fourth anniversary of anti-government protests in 2011, said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication.

In a statement issued yesterday (February 15), the Interior Ministry said the incident happened as rioters were preparing to attack police with Molotov cocktails.

The ministry blamed a short-circuit for the blaze, which opposition group Al Wefaq earlier blamed on the security services, and released pictures of Molotov cocktails allegedly recovered from the ma'atam.

In its statement the Interior Ministry said the ma'atam was a 'starting point used by thugs who were preparing to attack policemen with Molotov cocktails'.

“Material to start riots and commit acts of vandalism was seized from the scene after Civil Defence extinguished the blaze,” it said.

“Fire spread quickly because of the inflammable material stored in the Hussainiya (ma'atam).”

Meanwhile, the head of the body responsible for overseeing Shi'ite religious properties condemned the use of such locations to stash weapons.

Jaffari Waqf (Endowments) Directorate chairman Shaikh Mohsin Al Asfoor urged ma'atam owners to ensure that they were not being used for illegal purposes.

“It is wrong by all means to store weapons or Molotov Cocktails inside places of worship because it affects the sanctity of that place,” he told the GDN yesterday.

“Such crimes cannot be justified and we condemn the incident in Abu Baham in the strongest terms.”

He added 'strict action' would be taken against staff who allowed such premises to be misused.

“Strict action will be taken against those staff who undermine the law and also those who store such items in religious places,” he said.

Shaikh Al Asfoor also accused opposition groups of seeking to capitalise on 'crimes and chaos'.

“Some of the groups are taking advantage of all the crimes and chaos, which is wrong,” he said.

Muharraq-based Sunni Islamic scholar Shaikh Salah Al Jowder said this was not the first time places of worship had been used as cover by rioters.

“These people think policemen cannot come inside these religious places, so it's easy for them to use these buildings as a storehouse for their weapons and bombs,” he said.

“Some people even think it is all right to store all these materials because they think God approves all this.”

He also called for strict action to be taken against any clerics who resort to hate speech in their sermons.

“It's time we control our mosques and ma'atams in Bahrain and keep them safe from rogue elements of society,” added Shaikh Al Jowder.

“I request the Jaffari and Sunni Waqf (Endowments) Directorates to enforce strict rules and control on all religious sites in Bahrain.”

The GDN reported yesterday that it was largely business as usual in Bahrain on Saturday, despite rogue elements trying to disrupt life by setting up illegal road blocks in villages and attack police.

Al Wefaq yesterday claimed 52 people were injured and 41 had been arrested since Thursday, although the figures could not be verified. - TradeArabia News Service