DUBAI: Bahrain said on Sunday it had broken an Iranian-linked “terrorist cell” suspected of involvement in a bomb attack on a police bus in February and plotting to assassinate senior officials, state news agency BNA reported.
The agency quoted an Interior Ministry statement as saying that the 14-member cell was working under direct supervision from two exiled Bahrainis living in Iran, one of them recently designated by the United States as a “global terrorist.”
BNA said that six of the arrestees received military training in camps under Iranian Revolutionary Guard supervision, five had been trained by the Iraqi Hezbollah group and three received training in Bahrain.
They are suspected of a bomb attack on a bus in February that injured five police officers, the agency said.
The group is also suspected of plotting to attack “senior officials,” the statement said but gave no further details.
It said weapons, locally-made explosives and communication equipment had been seized from the homes of the suspects.
The statement said the cell was being financed and directed from Iran by Qassim Abdullah Ali and Mortada Majid Al-Sanadi. The US State Department in March labelled Sanadi and another Bahraini identified as Ahmad Hasan Yusuf as “Specially Designated Global Terrorists.”
Earlier this month, Bahrain announced it had uncovered a group comprising 54 members suspected of involvement in attacks on security forces, including organizing a prison break in January, and seizing automatic weapons.
Bahrain in February executed three men convicted in the death of three policemen, including an Emirati officer, in a 2014 bomb attack.
Bahrain breaks Iran-linked “terrorist” cell behind bus attack
Bahrain breaks Iran-linked “terrorist” cell behind bus attack
Spain highlights importance of Gaza reconstruction
- Spain officially recognized Palestine as a state in May 2024, in a coordinated move alongside Ireland and Norway
RAMALLAH: The Palestinian prime minister, Mohammed Mustafa, and the Spanish foreign minister, Jose Manuel Albares, on Friday discussed the latest developments in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
During their telephone conversation they emphasized the need to intensify international efforts to end the Israeli occupation and halt attacks and settler violence, and to secure the release of Palestinian funds held by Israeli authorities.
They affirmed the importance of ongoing efforts relating to plans for the reconstruction of Gaza, and Europe’s significant role in this process. Mustafa and Albares highlighted the need to unify Palestinian institutions in Gaza with those in the West Bank, with the aim of establishing a Palestinian state in line with international resolutions, including last year’s New York Declaration.
They also discussed coordination between their countries, and the strengthening of Spain’s political, diplomatic and financial support for Palestine, and Mustafa thanked Spain for its ongoing support.
Spain officially recognized Palestine as a state in May 2024, in a coordinated move alongside Ireland and Norway. Estephan Salameh, the Palestinian finance and planning minister, is set to visit Spain this month to discuss enhanced cooperation, particularly in the areas of development and reconstruction. Meanwhile, Israel continues operating in the occupied West Bank.
The Palestinian Prisoners media office said on Friday that Israel carried out numerous raids across the territory, including the major cities of Ramallah and Hebron, according to The Associated Press.
Nearly 50 people were detained, following the arrest of at least 50 other Palestinians on Thursday, most of those in the Ramallah area.
As 2026 begins, the shaky 12-week-old ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has largely ended large-scale Israeli bombardment of Gaza.
But Palestinians are still being killed by Israeli fire, especially along the so-called Yellow Line that delineates areas under Israeli control, and the humanitarian crisis is compounded by frequent winter rains and colder temperatures.
On Friday, American actor and film producer Angelina Jolie visited the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.
The only crossing between the territory and a country other than Israel, it remains closed despite Palestinian requests to reopen it to people and aid.
Jolie met with members of the Red Crescent on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing and then visited a hospital in the nearby city of Arish to speak with Palestinian patients on Friday, according to Egyptian officials.
Aid groups say not enough shelter materials are getting into Gaza during the truce.
