(tasnim) -- Sheikh Abdullah al-Daqqaq pointed to the continued siege of Sheikh Qassim’s house in Diraz, west of Manama, and said the Al Khalifa regime has decided to proceed with the blockade.

The spiritual leader of the Shiite majority in the kingdom is currently under pressure and it is not clear when the siege would come to an end, he said.

Sheikh Qassim is elderly and physically ill, Sheikh Daqqaq said, calling for medical treatment for the top leader.

“Therefore, we are asking the UN and the secretary-general of this organization to intervene in this matter so that (the house of) Ayatollah Qassim and the Diraz region are freed from the siege,” he stated.

On May 23, Bahraini regime forces stormed into the residence of Sheikh Qassim in the village of Diraz, arresting everyone inside the house.

At least five people were reportedly killed in the raid, and over 280 others were arrested.

The regime then placed the village under a siege.

Bahrain, a close ally of the US in the Persian Gulf, has been witnessing almost daily protests against the Al Khalifa dynasty since early 2011, with security forces resorting to harsh measures against demonstrators.

Scores of Bahrainis have been killed and hundreds of others injured and arrested in the ongoing crackdown on the peaceful protests.