RELIGION

Bahrain court more than doubles opposition leader's sentence

Associated Press
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FILE - In this Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2015 file photo, a Bahraini anti-government protester holds up an image of jailed Shiite opposition leader Sheikh Ali Salman demanding his freedom during a protest in Daih, Bahrain. A Bahraini appeals court has more than doubled the prison term for the country's top Shiite opposition figure who was part of the island nation's 2011 Arab Spring-inspired uprising (AP Photo/Hasan Jamali, File) (The Associated Press)

A Bahraini boy runs past a wall with posters showing jailed Shiite cleric Ali Salman, leader of the Al-Wefaq opposition society, that have been painted over by authorities in Malkiya village, Bahrain, Sunday, May 29, 2016. Salman, who is serving a four-year sentence, is to appear in court Monday for a hearing in the appeal of his conviction of inciting disobedience and hatred and insulting an official institution in the Sunni-ruled kingdom. (AP Photo/Hasan Jamali) (The Associated Press)

A Bahraini man walks past a wall with posters showing jailed Shiite cleric Ali Salman, leader of the Al-Wefaq opposition society, that have been painted over by authorities in Malkiya village, Bahrain, Sunday, May 29, 2016. Salman, who is serving a four-year sentence, is to appear in court Monday for a hearing in the appeal of his conviction of inciting disobedience and hatred and insulting an official institution in the Sunni-ruled kingdom. (AP Photo/Hasan Jamali) (The Associated Press)

A Bahraini appeals court has more than doubled the prison term for the country's top Shiite opposition figure who was part of the island nation's 2011 Arab Spring-inspired uprising.

Sheikh Ali Salman's lawyer, Jalila al-Sayed, says the court increased his sentence to nine years imprisonment on Monday, up from an earlier sentence of four years handed down last year.

Salman is the secretary-general of the al-Wefaq, the country's largest Shiite political group. He was arrested in late 2014 and later convicted on charges that included incitement and insulting the Interior Ministry, which oversees the police.

Tiny Bahrain hosts the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet. Members of the country's Shiite majority frequently hold localized protests against the Sunni monarchy that often include clashes with police.