TEHRAN – Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has said it is “essential” that the international community pay special attention to the “unfolding” developments in Bahrain in order to avoid “another catastrophe” in the Middle East.

In a tweet on Wednesday, Zarif wrote he was “alarmed about developments unfolding in Bahrain. Urgent international attention is essential to avoid another catastrophe in our region.”

On July 17, Bahrain’s court ordered the dissolution of the al-Wefaq National Islamic Society and also seizure of its funds which is the country’s main opposition group.

Al-Wefaq’s Secretary General Sheikh Ali Salman has been in prison since December 2014.

Al-Wefaq is the main Shiite opposition group in the Sunni-ruled Bahrain.

On Tuesday, the UN human rights office expressed deep regret over a Bahraini court decision to dissolve Al Wefaq.

“In spite of strong calls from the international community for Bahrain to seek to de-escalate the worrying tensions in the country, we regret the decision to press ahead with the ban,” the UN website quoted Ravina Shamdasani, a spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), as telling reporters in Geneva.

NA/PA