This year marks the 6th anniversary of Ayatollah Sheikh al-Nimr, who was shot, imprisoned for over 3 years, and then executed by the Saudi regime.
At the beginning of the 1950s, and the end of what was known as the British mandate, the Arab elites were making their way towards liberation from another disguised colonialism, hidden behind the puppet regimes.
Liberal uprisings emerged in Najd and Hejaz, such as the uprising of Aramco workers. At that stage, Nasser Al-Saeed emerged to demand political reforms, a constitution, elections, a fair distribution of wealth, and the stifling of the colonizer’s hand. Al Saeed was an author, the founder of the Arabian Peninsula People’s Union, and one of the most significant critics of the Saudi royal family.
Then, the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran inspired the elites of the Hejaz and Najd to form a new revolutionary nucleus aspiring to liberation and justice.
Therefore, Ayatollah Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr emerged as a symbol of the reform-struggle against the corrupted policies of the Saudi regime, which manipulates Islam as a pretext for its criminal practices, and masters’ repression, targeting clerics, intellectuals and critics, in the worst forms.
He opposed the regime’s aggressive tendency and its complete disregard for justice, equality and the right of expression in violation of the Islamic values and principles. He did not deviate from his principles, but was highly diligent in his reformist role.
The positions of the Ayatollah al-Nimr are derived from the authentic Muhammedian Islam, and this was evident in his persistent calls for reforms and confronting tyrants, starting from a basic point which is to overcome fear, as he considered that the domination of tyrants over peoples was caused by the weakness of these peoples and not the strength of tyrants.
Ayatollah Al-Nimr was a knowledgeable, eloquent; a Husseini in word, deed, and sacrifice. He urged people to rise up, assume responsibilities, and not to remain neutral. Sheikh Al-Nimr worked on emphasizing that the origin of the existence of the Saudi and other oppressive rulers in the Arabian Peninsula is illegitimate and it is not permissible to obey them, which was evident in these words of His Eminence: “I learned from Al-Hussein (peace be upon him) the pure divine monotheism that is not tainted by polytheism like obedience to the tyrants.”
The reformist movement of Sheikh Al-Nimr in the Arabian Peninsula is quite significant for its courageous stances that strengthens the will of the oppressed and desperate peoples for change. Ayatollah Al-Nimr rejected the corruption of the tribal system for nearly a quarter of a century until the last moment of his extrajudicial killing.
One of Sheikh al-Nimr’s central and most charismatic characteristics was his fearless immutable attachment to push for sociopolitical change. In other words, Ayatollah Al-Nimr persistently urged people to be fearless and to perceive their duties, that is why the Saudi regime did not hesitate to execute him.
Ayatollah Al-Nimr’s speeches stress preserving human dignity, which is preserved by divine texts and international laws. His insight was piercing, and his path was clearly visible and marked by his special theory: “The roar of the word is louder than the roar of bullets”.
The Al Saud authority was afraid of his model to spread not only in Qatif, but in all regions of the Arabian Peninsula. It claims to be Islamic yet its laws are nothing but Wahhabi laws fabricated to destort Islam at a time that is rolling toward submission and normalization with the Zionist occupation.
