MANAMA: The High Criminal Court issued a ruling convicting 51 defendants for establishing, organizing and joining a terrorist group and committing crimes within the framework of that group’s activities.
It ruled to punish them with imprisonment for periods ranging between (five years) and (life imprisonment), and to fine 17 accused an amount of one hundred thousand dinars and obligating three accused to pay the damages value estimated at (51,400) dinars and acquit only one accused and confiscate the seized items.
The Public Prosecution has conducted extensive investigations and intelligence that found defendants organizing themselves within the framework of a group established by some of them for the purpose of carrying out their plans to commit terrorist acts in the Kingdom of Bahrain, based on directives received from the Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ leaders abroad who take Iran and Iraq as sanctuaries. The defendants were assigned to form and organize armed groups consisting of internal elements to plan and implement terrorist and sabotage operations inside Bahrain. The accused, members of that group, who are in Bahrain, were arrested late last year by the General Department of Investigation and Criminal Evidence.
Investigations and intelligence revealed that the 52 defendants, 27 of whom were fugitives abroad, had received financial support and funding from the Revolutionary Guards and were supplied with weapons, explosives, equipment and tools necessary to commit terrorist operations in the Kingdom, targeting economic and vital installations, security patrol sites, the headquarters of the Ministry of Interior and Bahrain Defence Force.
To implement those plans, the terrorists inside Bahrain were assigned to travel to Iran and Iraq where they underwent military training in the camps of the Revolutionary Guard and the Iraqi Hezbollah and were trained on how to lead the terrorist groups inside of Bahrain. They have also been instructed to recruit other terrorists to form separate clusters that would carry out the terrorist operations in the different areas of Bahrain. They were also trained militarily in the use of weapons, explosives and monitoring operations. The defendants have taken orders from their leaders abroad to implement an operation targeting a bank’s ATM at the entrance of Jidhafs area on November 2019. Some of the defendants have also received orders to attack public transportation vehicles. They targeted vehicles of a transportation company with the intention of setting them on fire as they passed on Budaiya highway. The attempt was foiled, and the defendants arrested.
The arrested suspects were also seized in possession of anti-personnel explosive devices, vehicles and tools used in their manufacture, in addition to Molotov cocktails.
In view of the conclusive evidence against the accused, including physical and technical evidence, which is the finding of fingerprints and human cells attributed to some of the defendants on the tools used in preparing explosive devices, and video clips extracted from security cameras in the locations where the terrorist operations were committed; the Public Prosecution ordered the defendants to be referred to trial after they were charged with establishing, organizing and managing a terrorist group, joining it, and financing it with knowledge of its objectives, as well as training and training in the use of weapons and explosives, arson, destruction, possession of Molotov cocktails and committing acts of sabotage, all of which are carried out for terrorist purposes.
The High Criminal Court looked into the case in public sessions in which the imprisoned defendants and their lawyers represented, during which the court heard evidence witnesses as well as defence witnesses at the request of the defendants and the defence of the lawyers until today when it issued its previous ruling convicting them and punishing them for what was attributed to them and the defendants who fled.
