DUBAI // Bahrain says it seized bomb-making materials planned for use within its borders and in neighbouring Saudi Arabia, in what it claims was an attempt to use its borders to attack targets in the region.
Police chief Maj Gen Tariq Al Hasan said yesterday that the techniques used in the manufacture of the explosives bore “clear similarities” to methods used by what it called proxy groups of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards.
Bahrain often accuses Iran of seeking to undermine its Sunni monarchy. Iran denies interfering in Bahrain, but acknowledges supporting opposition groups who seek greater political and economic rights for Bahrain’s Shiite community.
Gen Hasan said the seized items, including the powerful explosive C4, commercial detonators, advanced circuitry, chemicals and mobile phones, “represent a significant escalation in attempts to smuggle explosives material into Bahrain”.
The June 6 seizure in the Dar Kulaib district was made possible by information arising from the capture in May of a vehicle containing similar explosives as it was being driven across the causeway that links Bahrain to Saudi Arabia, he said.
On June 11, 57 Shiites were convicted of forming a terrorist group whose targets, reported the Gulf Daily News, included the Saudi embassy and the causeway. It is not clear whether this group was linked to the vehicle captured in May, or the explosives seized on June 6.
Bahrain has reported an increase in attacks, some of them fatal, using home-made explosives in the past two years.
Gen Hasan said the June 6 operation and previous seizures “point to an emerging trend. The professionalism with which these seized materials are assembled and concealed is a clear indication of international support and sponsorship”.
He expressed concern that the materials were destined for Saudi Arabia, a “sign that extremists are increasingly using Bahrain’s borders as a launch pad” for attacks elsewhere in the region”.
* Reuters
