Bahrain Arrests 41 People Linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps

By Habib Toumi

MANAMA: Bahrain’s Ministry of Interior said that it had arrested 41 members of an organization linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Wilayat Al Faqih ideology (Guardianship of the Jurist), a Shiite political doctrine advocating that a qualified Islamic jurist (faqih) should assume political and religious leadership.

Eleven other members based in Iran have been identified as intermediaries between the IRGC and operatives affiliated with the organization in the kingdom, the ministry said in a statement.

The members of the organization had formed and led a terrorist organization, financed terrorism, coordinated with Iran and groups in Iraq and Lebanon classified as terrorist organizations, and received military training in support of those activities, the ministry added.

Members of the organization “practiced systematic intimidation against members of Bahrain’s Shiite community, exploiting them and carrying out covert activities.”

“The organization had infiltrated a number of religious, social, charitable and educational institutions, including kindergartens, schools and religious seminaries, as well as key areas of community activity” with the aim “to promote allegiance to foreign entities, specifically the IRGC, while encouraging hostility towards the state and disregard for its laws at the expense of national loyalty.”

The ministry added that the organization, composed of members of the court-dissolved Islamic Scholars Council, also “sought to influence and undermine the national will of members of the Shiite community in Bahrain.”

The organization “sought to control and politicize sermons delivered by religious scholars and reciters in mosques, matams (community centers) and religious occasions, while resorting to intimidation against those overseeing such activities.”

“The organization committed criminal acts and engaged in practices that spread fear among citizens, in addition to collecting funds for unlawful purposes and activities in violation of the law, posing a threat to community security and civil peace through receiving funds from IRGC operatives in Iran to finance terrorist activities in Bahrain.”

The ministry said the organization’s activities had been under surveillance and monitoring, and that the measures taken were aimed at safeguarding the security of Bahrain and preserving the safety and stability of society in all its segments and components.

The ministry stressed that it will “continue to counter any threats to the kingdom’s security and stability and will take firm action against any attempts to undermine civil peace or incite discord and division within Bahraini society.”