Dubai: Bahrain’s interior ministry said that a security operation was launched on Tuesday morning in the village of Deraz, west of the capital Manama, “to maintain order and remove violations punishable under law and that hinder the movement of citizens, stall their interests and put their safety at risk”.
“The intervention is to enforce security and public order since the site was turned into a meeting ground for suspects wanted in security-related cases and fugitives,” the ministry posted on its Twitter account.
“Drivers planning to use Budaiya highway are requested to seek alternative roads until the traffic is back to normal,” the ministry said. “Citizens are urged to cooperate with the police and follow instructions for the security and safety of all.”
Deraz is where the house of Shaikh Eisa Qasim, a prominent leader in the Shiite community who, along with two others, was given a one-year suspended prison sentence this week on charges of money laundering and illegal fund-raising, is located.
The case arose after investigators said they discovered more than $10 million in an account held by Qasim in addition to assets in real estate.
Supporters said the funds were part of a Shiite tradition that allowed senior figures to collect tax and spend it in the interest of ordinary Muslims.
A siege has been held by his followers around his house since June last year when his Bahraini citizenship was revoked over charges of money laundering and fuelling extremism in Bahrain. The followers said they feared he would be deported.
Bahraini officials last year vowed determination in going ahead with decisions “aimed to maintain the country’s security, protect its citizens and residents and continue with the development process”.
The interior ministry in June last year said Qasim’s citizenship was revoked after he “played a major role in creating an extremist sectarian environment and worked on dividing the society”.
Reactions ranged from full support both in Bahrain and abroad, mainly from the Arab League, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Saudi Arabia and Morocco, to calls to reverse the decisions, mainly from Iran.
Angry reactions to the measures included threats from Qasim Sulaimani, the commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard’s Quds Force who said Bahrain and the region would be set ablaze.
But Bahraini officials dismissed the threats and explained that the measures were needed “to rectify the political process, protect the nation and safeguard stability and security”.
“Bahrain is acting within an international framework in its war on terrorism,” Prime Minister Prince Khalifa Bin Salman Al Khalifa said during a working meeting. “The measures taken aim to prevent foreign interference that wants to wreak havoc and to spread terrorism. No government in the world can tolerate terrorising its people or tampering with their safety.”
Shaikh Khalid Bin Ahmad Al Khalifa, Minister of Foreign Affairs, said the decision stemmed from “keenness on protecting the security of the homeland and the gains of its people and on preventing the country from descending into chaos as it has happened to some countries in the region”.
“All procedures were implemented according to the law and followed many violations committed by people who were involved in practices that pose a threat to the interests of the homeland and its security and open the door to violence, extremism and terrorism that considerably damage the values of democracy and human rights,” he told diplomats based in Bahrain. “No state keen on the well-being of its citizens and on a secure and prosperous future for them would tolerate such risks and threats.”
Interior Minister Shaikh Rashid Bin Abdullah Al Khalifa said the ministry would carry on taking the necessary measures against lawbreakers.
“Now, it is time for unity and cohesion, and there is no room for sowing divide or extremism,” Shaikh Rashid said. “Citizenship entails rights and duties that everyone should take into account. No one is above the law or beyond accountability. The security of the kingdom and the safety of its people top all priorities.”
The minister told the parliament that the ministry embraced a zero-tolerance policy towards anyone breaching the constitution and the law, causing harm to Bahrain’s sects and targeting the social fabric and the unity of the people.
Parliament Speaker Ahmad Al Mulla said the parliament supported the measures taken by the government “to safeguard the reforms, prevent the subversion of the security and stability of the homeland, defend the rights of the citizens and promote the rule of law”.
