Bahrain: Iran harboring 160 ‘terrorists’

DUBAI: Bahrain’s interior minister accused Iran of harboring 160 Bahrainis convicted of terrorism and stripped of their citizenship, in an interview published Wednesday.

All 160 “fugitives” had been stripped of citizenship in “terrorism cases” targeting Bahraini police and security forces, Sheikh Rashed Al-Khalifa told Asharq Al-Awsat, sister publication of Arab News.

He accused Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards of having trained the group, who were convicted of attacks that killed 25 security personnel and wounded 3,000 others, according to Asharq Al-Awsat.

Bahrain has seen sporadic violence since protests erupted in 2011.

Meanwhile, Bahrain on Tuesday announced it had signed a $3.8 billion deal with Lockheed Martin for 16 upgraded F-16 fighter jets.

The Bahrain Defense Force signed the agreement with the US company during a defense exhibition in the kingdom, home to the US Fifth Fleet, the state-run Bahrain News Agency reported.

US President Donald Trump has eased restrictions on arms sales to countries including Bahrain.

The kingdom, a key US ally located across the water from Iran, accuses Iran of meddling in its internal affairs, an allegation Tehran denies.

Bahrain is home to the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet and a British army base is currently under construction.