Bahrainis' trial adjourned in arms possession case

Manama : The High Criminal Court has adjourned the trial of 11 men, held in connection with possessing foreign “military grade” weapons and explosives, until August 3.

Only seven of the Bahrainis are in custody, while the rest are still at large and being tried in absentia. They are all accused of establishing and being part of a terrorist group and possessing weapons and explosives.

The court files reveal that the confiscated weapons included 20 grenades, 504 explosives, 958 rifle ammo, six pistols, five shotgun bullets, more than 1.5 tonnes of high-grade explosives such as C4-RDX, TNT and other powerful chemical explosives, in addition to detonators, rifles, shotguns, silencer guns and electrical circuits used in manufacturing bombs.

Four of the accused men have reportedly received militia training at camps linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and the Hezbollah terrorist brigades in Iraq.

The defendants are said to have established a cell and they divided into two groups. The cell was formed by one of the defendants, while two co-defendants ran the two terrorist groups.

The first group reportedly managed to stash huge amounts of explosives and weapons in a rented house in Nuwaidrat. They also used the house as a workshop, fitted with specialised machinery. The second group was allegedly assigned with receiving the smuggled weapons and explosive shipments from Iran.

The Public Prosecution accused two of the defendants of illegally forming a group to work against law and constitution, and utilising terror in preventing State institutions from performing their duties. The rest of the defendants were accused of joining a terrorist group, possession and manufacturing of weapons and explosives, raising funds for a terrorist group and training on the use of weapons and explosives.

DT News reported earlier that the weapons were seized from underground bunkers built inside a house that was located in the middle of a residential area in Nuwaidrat village, few kilometres to the south of Manama on September 30. Some of the weapons confiscated were proven to be Iranian made.