Two killed during protest in Saudi Arabia

 Protests after the arrest of  a prominent Shia activist and cleric Sheik Nimr al-Nimr resulted in two protesters being killed. The protests were in the town of Awamiya in eastern Saudi Arabia. There have been demonstrations in the city Qatif as well.
   The official Saudi press agency said that Nimr was arrested after he and supporters fought with security forces and crashed into a police car. Nimr was shot in the thigh. He will be charged with creating unrest in the area.
 Nimr was wanted by authorities. Back in 2009 he suggested that the area should separate from Saudi Arabia unless the government freed political prisoners, treated the Shia minority fairly, and fought corruption. Shia cannot obtain high ranks in the government or security forces. The minority numbers about 2 million. For more see this article.  The area where the protests are taking place is rich in oil facilities.