A Bahraini court shuttered on Wednesday a Shiite Muslim clerics’ council, after authorities accused it of politicization and illegal operations, in a revengeful step ahead of the third anniversary of the Bahraini revolution.

A Bahraini court shuttered on Wednesday a Shiite Muslim clerics' council, after authorities accused it of politicization and illegal operations, in a revengeful step ahead of the third anniversary of the Bahraini revolution on February 14.

The court ordered the closure of the Olamaa Islamic Council and the liquidation of its assets following a lawsuit by the ministry of justice, Islamic affairs and endowment, a judicial source said.

The verdict came as authorities crack down on the peaceful opposition action, by the majority of the population in the Gulf state.

The council led by prominent cleric Sheikh Issa Qassem "violates the constitution and the laws of the kingdom," the ministry claimed at the time.

Home to the US Fifth Fleet and strategically situated across the Gulf from Iran, Bahrain still sees sporadic demonstrations, mostly outside the capital Manama.

At least 89 people have been killed in Bahrain since the protests began, according to the International Federation for Human Rights.