17 Facts About Isa Qassim

Isa Qassim is the spiritual leader of Al Wefaq, Bahrain's biggest opposition society.

Isa Qassim is the founder and leader of the Islamic Enlightenment Institution.

Isa Qassim was born in 1937 to a fisherman in Duraz though some sources reported he was born either in 1940 or 1941.

Isa Qassim attended Budaiya primary school where he was known for his intelligence and it was reported that he always scored the highest marks.

In 1962, Qassim began studies at the Najaf Religious Institute in Iraq, where he studied under many Marja's including Mohammad Baqir al-Sadr.

Isa Qassim remained in Al-Najaf for 4 years then returned to Bahrain where he worked as a teacher in Al-Khamis intermediate school for 2 years before returning to Al-Najaf.

At the beginning of the 1990s, Isa Qassim traveled to Qum in Iran to continue his religious studies.

Isa Qassim studied on the hands of some of the highest-ranking Marjas including: Ayatollah Sayed Mahmood al-Qashimi, Ayatollah Sayed Kadhem al-Haeri and Ayatollah Fadhel al-Lankarani.

Isa Qassim has been leading Friday sermon in Duraz mosque since his return to Bahrain in 2001.

In 1971, Isa Qassim was chosen by religious leaders to be a candidate for elections while he was still in Iraq.

In 1973, Isa Qassim was elected a member of Bahrain's parliament, the National Assembly of Bahrain, until the parliament was dissolved in August 1975.

Isa Qassim gained 1079 votes making him the biggest winner in the fifteen constituency.

The Bahraini government alleged that Isa Qassim was implicated in a coup plot in 1996.

Many Bahraini Shias denied that Isa Qassim was involved in any plot and claimed that the confessions were taken under torture.

Isa Qassim is often referred to as the spiritual leader of Al Wefaq.

Isa Qassim, criticised al-Khalifa's claims that the mobilisation of GCC troops is a broader effort to ensure regional stability, rather than what Qassim considers to be Sunni entrenchment and a veiled challenge to Shia representation in the government.

On 20 June 2016, a week after the government of Bahrain suspended the main Shia opposition party al-Wefaq, Isa Qassim was stripped of his Bahraini citizenship.