AL-AWWAMIYA, Saudi Arabia: In Saudi Arabia, the Shiite region in the east is the center of the kingdom's oil industry. The region is tense since the Saudi religious police brutally attacked several times Shiite pilgrims in Al-Baqee Cemetery and the holy shrine of Prophet (s) in the holy city of Medinah in February this year.

After the attacks and assaults, a prominent cleric Sheikh Baqer An-Nimr lashed out at the government in a sermon and warned the Shiites will break away if their 'dignity' is not restored.

He threatened to separate from if Saudi authorities don't treat Shiites better. Shiites make up 2 – 3 million of the kingdom's population of 22.6 million and they have long complained of discrimination, saying they are barred from key positions in the military and government and are not given an equal share of the country's wealth.

"Our dignity has been pawned away, and if it is not ... restored, we will call for secession," al-Nimr said during Friday prayers last month. "Our dignity is more precious than the unity of this land."

Since that sermon, more than 35 people have been arrested in a government crackdown and an-Nimr has gone into hiding. Police have set up checkpoints on the roads leading into Awwamiya, one of the Shiite area's poorest towns.

Other Shiite leaders have distanced themselves from an Nimr's comments, though they say the government must address growing Shiite anger over discrimination and poverty, which they warn could break into unrest.

Anticipating a crackdown over his words, an-Nimr told his followers not to hold protests if he was arrested or pursued — but instead to hold special prayers.

In a show of solidarity with an-Nimr on Thursday night, mosques in this town of 25,000 people, nearly all Shiite, blared the prayer of supplication for God's help that the Imam Ali (AS) is said to have recited in times of crisis. The night before, residents had gone up to their rooftops to shout the prayer.

In the main Shiite city of Qatif, less radical and more prosperous than Awwamiya, residents adopt a more conciliatory tone than the cleric.

"An-Nimr words do not express the view of the majority of the Shiites," said. "Shiites do not have a political plan for (secession)."

Jaafar al-Shayeb, a Shiite member of Qatif's municipal council said: "He (An-Nimr) just wanted to express the feelings of anger that are prevalent".