Bahrain to Try Terrorist Cell Trained in Iran, Iraq

Bahraini Fourth Criminal Court announced that a hearing will be held on February 28 to review the case of 10 suspects involved in terrorist crimes and trained by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard and Iraqi Hezbollah.

Chief of Anti-Terror Crime Prosecution, Attorney-General Ahmed al-Hammadi said the public prosecution has completed its investigations in the case of forming a group to carry out terrorist acts.

Hammadi said that seven of the ten suspects are in custody while the other three are fugitives abroad. He explained that they would be referred to the court on charges of joining and running a terrorist group, possessing explosive devices and tools used to make them and forearms, and training on using them.

On July 18, the General Directorate of Criminal Investigations and Forensic Evidence received information about a terrorist group. Intensive investigation revealed that an individual, who died later in Iraq in 2014, recruited the suspects and formed a group with the purpose of committing terrorist acts in Bahrain.

The individual sought to provide the recruits with training and coordinated with external parties to help some of them travel to Iraq and Iran where they were trained by members of the Revolutionary Guard and the Iraqi Hezbollah on ways to use weapons and explosives, according to a statement published by BNA.

When the suspects returned to Bahrain, they received weapons and products to be used in making bombs that had been smuggled into Bahrain. The group members hid the weapons and explosives in secret stores.

However, following the issuance of search warrants by the public prosecution, the weapons and explosives were found inside the homes of some of the recruits and in a cache.

The police also found 511 detonators and a car that was used by the group members to transport weapons and explosives.

Investigators found on the seized items fingerprints that matched those of the group members as well as explanations and guidelines on forming and managing terrorist groups and on ways to recruit members and to engage in secret communication between them.

The statement added that one of the suspects’ fingerprints were found on some of the seized items and another had a guide which explained about the various types of explosives found and how to make and use them to bomb cars and installations.

Investigations also revealed that one of the terrorists had previously been charged in a separate case after he participated in a terrorist act that included exploding a device on Shaikh Jaber al-Ahmad, near the Nuwaidrat Roundabout on June 30, 2016 and in which a Bahraini woman was killed. The case against him was closed following his death.

###

http://english.aawsat.com/2017/02/article55366893/bahrain-try-terrorist-cell-trained-iran-iraq