Bahrainis fighting in Iraq

Manama : Wanted terrorists in Bahrain are fighting in Iraq with government-supported militias, DT News has learnt.

The majority of the 150 foreign fighters in the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) are Bahrainis, recent reports have confirmed.

According to Iraq Network Press Plus (INP) news website, the Bahraini fighters are fugitives and wanted by the Bahraini Government for terrorism related cases.

They reportedly entered Iraq during the past six years as pilgrims and they were granted “religious entry visas” by the Iraqi Government to join the Iran-backed militias.

“Following the 2011 events in Bahrain, these individuals entered Iraq through Kuwait as religious tourists,” INP Plus reported.

The network reported that most of the Bahraini fighters’ entry and military recruitment and training were facilitated by Maytham Al Jamri, who was found guilty in several terrorism related cases in Bahrain. Al Jamri, who’s seeking refuge in Iraq and Iran since 2011, had his citizenship revoked in January 2015 for threatening national security, along with 71 other Bahrainis. INP Plus’s report revealed that Al Jamri established a military training camp near the city of Najaf named Ahrar Al Manama to train non-Iraqi fighters.

“We came here to defend the lands of Imams Ali and Al Hussain,” Al Jamri said this in a video statement, showing him holding a rifle in a military training camp.

The network highlighted that the Bahrainis joined the PMF after obtaining the militias’ head Faleh Fayyadh approval.

Quoting a leader in the Iraqi branch of Hezbollah Hussain Allami, the report mentioned that “the Bahraini fighters are not constantly on the battlefield, as they play strong roles in the media and moral motivation”.

The report claimed that the fighters are financially and morally supported by the Iraqi Government.

“They receive monthly allowances of USD1000 (around BD375). They’re provided with shelter and even wedded in some cases,” the report added.