Bahrain's opposition chief 'attempted govt overthrow'

(MENAFN- Arab News) DUBAI: Prosecutors on Monday charged Bahrain's opposition chief with attempting to overthrow the regime and sent him to trial despite international calls for his release.Sheikh Ali Salman will stand trial from Jan. 28 on charges of 'promoting the overthrow and change of the political regime by force' prosecutor general Nayef Mahmud said in a statement.Salman head of Al-Wefaq bloc has been in custody since Dec. 28 and his detention has sparked near-daily protests.Salman was also charged with inciting disobedience and inciting hatred against a part of the population in public statements.The prosecutor said Salman had confessed under questioning to making the statements in speeches in which he allegedly referred to meeting with groups abroad who offered to back an armed uprising.Shiite-dominated Iran has been accused of interfering in Bahrain since its government ended protests led by Al-Wefaq in 2011 seeking a constitutional monarchy.Salman was given 'all legal guarantees' such as assistance from a team of lawyers and family visits during his questioning Mahmud said.