Preemptive operation foiled terror attacks: Interior Minister

As part of community partnership and reinforcement of interaction with national, official and public organisations, Interior Minister Lt-General Shaikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa met public figures, including religious scholars, members of the Council of Representatives and the Shura Council, representatives of human rights organisations, media editors-in-chief and journalists, businessmen, lawyers, physicians, owners of majalis, dignitaries, and heads of sports clubs, social and youth centres.
At the meeting, the minister delivered the following speech:

"I am glad to welcome you all and thank you for accepting the invitation to attend this meeting that comes as part of community partnership.
The general indications at present show stability in the security situation in the Kingdom. I want to inform you about some important public security-related matters in the context of transparency and community partnership that all of us want to sustain in the interest of national security.
Here I should highlight some important terrorist operations carried out in 2017. I have chosen four key operations. We start with the Jau jailbreak that targeted police personnel and led to the death of Policeman Abdulsalam Saif. Another operation was in February when First Lt Hisham Al Hamadi was attacked and killed. In June a police patrol was targeted in Deraz resulting in the death of Policeman Abdulsamad Haji while a number of policemen were injured. In October a security bus was targeted on Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman Highway and led to the death of Policeman Salman and injuries to a number of personnel. There were other operations in the same period that we didn’t highlight.
With these developments on the security front, efforts have been intensified and operations coordinated to limit any escalation in the security situation and win through the initiative in the field. A comprehensive operation was initiated to gather information about the active organisations and their members, in coordination with the National Security Agency and other security agencies. This operation continued for a time and even as it was on, some terrorist incidents occurred such as the oil pipeline blast in Buri in November.
The observation of the situation as it developed, and the ongoing operations, showed that terror cells were responsible for storing weapons and bomb-making material and for transporting and distributing bombs and cash.
Those envelopes that you see contain BD50 each as reward, unfortunately not for police but murderers and shows that murder is cheap, and committing acts of terror and vandalism can be rewarding. The cells are run by individuals in Iran who coordinate with the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, the Popular Crowd Forces in Iraq (Popular Mobilisation Forces) and the Hezbollah in Lebanon to train terrorists. This fact has been highlighted in the past and continues to be highlighted.
I want to affirm that those persons would be held accountable and if the countries they are living in do not cooperate with the Interpol and ignore the Red Notice or bilateral coordination, then those individuals will have no civil rights or right to stay among us. This is what we will work to achieve.
After a vigorous operation, by the grace of God the targets were identified and classified according to the dangers they posed. Thereafter, a security plan was put in place to target the sources of risks and threats to the homeland on the security map. It was the most important preventive security operation and essentially achieved the following results:
First: Arrest of 47 main terrorists. Most of them are members of three groups (Saraya al-Ashtar, Saraya Al Muqawama Al Sha'biya and Saraya al-Mukhtar). These groups have been internationally designated as terrorist organisations and their members as terrorists, having proven to the world that they had committed terrorist acts.
Second: Foiling of terrorist crimes including attempts to assassinate officials and public figures, targeting of police officers, policemen and security patrols, arson and vandalism targeting oil establishments to hit the national economy, and plots to vandalise and disrupt national celebrations.
Third: Arrest of a number of dangerous fugitives accused in earlier terrorist crimes. The security authorities carried out 105 security missions, including search of 42 sites and warehouses. A total of 290 fugitives and suspects were referred to the Public Prosecution and a quantity of weapons, equipment and explosives seized. The Public Prosecutor’s office will release the details of its investigations later.
Fourth: Identification of the intentions and capabilities of the terrorists, where they were trained and their areas of operations.
Fifth: The compilation of the intelligence information on the size of a group and its affiliates inside and outside the country.
Sixth: follow up to arrest the remaining fugitives.

Respected Attendees,

Our security mission does not end with the uncovering of a terror group and the arrest of lawbreakers. Ours is a comprehensive mission which aims to achieve security and stability across the country, and to have a comprehensive security viewpoint to understand the main reasons and motives that have a bearing on the general security situation.
The primary issue that I want to focus on, owing to its direct relation with our security and stability, is our national identity. Our Bahraini identity was affected in the aftermath of the 2011 incidents and had its implications for social relations. There have been many efforts to include everyone and bring the situation under control. These efforts have been led by His Majesty the King through his resolve to interact with the people on various national occasions and through meetings with the dignitaries of the governorates and the public, in addition to honouring outstanding individuals in various areas, including creative, cultural and sports fields. His Royal Highness the Prime Minister and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, Deputy Supreme Commander and First Deputy Prime Minister have been keen to interact with the community through their weekly majalis as part of their efforts to forge partnership with citizens. In addition, field visits by my brother ministers and officials have been good opportunities to learn about a situation and meet the people’s needs through providing welfare and services.
On many occasions, HM the King has highlighted that we are adopting a moderate approach. I understand from this that HM the King has called upon the people to free themselves from the isolation of sectarianism and extremism and progress towards nationalism. It is a call for positivity and optimism. It is a call for the generous love of a father. The achievement of this national goal requires from us an effort to confront extremism, sectarianism and hatred.
Let me remind you of what I said more than ten years ago. That the first directive I received from HM the King was: “Remember you are here to serve all”. This meant all people without exception. On receiving this directive, I wondered why HM had given it and what did it mean? Then I realised that HM the King wanted all to be blessed with security and stability so as to protect his nation against pain and suffering.
If we review HM the King’s reforms project, we realise it is the largest national project that has included the approval of the National Action Charter, the drafting of the Constitution, the creation of the National Assembly representing the Council or Representatives and the Shura Council, and the endorsement of laws and rules. In this major achievement we cannot find a single word that discriminates between one citizen and another.
Let me ask you a question: How do you want Bahrain to be for your children? Do you want Bahrain of 2011? Do you want our children to live in disagreement? We, by the grace of God, have been raised in a nation that is filled with love. Therefore it is our duty to safeguard the trust we received.
I want to focus on the dangers of targeting our Bahraini identity, as there are issues related to upbringing based on wrong doctrines, promotion of incitement, negative reports in the foreign media, and behavioral tendency to remain isolated that goes against integration, all of which work to create closed societies. This has prompted us to go for a strategy to reinforce the sense of belonging to the nation.
The tendency to promote incitement is an issue that should not recur. It occurred through political or religious speeches or the media. It has had a negative effect on the national identity and spirit. This issue should be kept under observation and those responsible should be held accountable through the laws and regulations as well as the spirit of nationalism. As for the upbringing based on wrong doctrines and training children at home and in schools, I want to thank His Excellency the Education Minister for implementing the national education programme. It needs to be given prominence for its goals to be achieved, as it should be considered as a primary matter. In my opinion, teachers are important, for they believe in their national mission and can pass it on to the youth.
Brothers and sisters,
I present a comprehensive initiative to develop the spirit of belonging to the nation that focuses on five elements: legislation and rules, curriculums, publications, public relations campaigns, and programmes for the purpose. I look forward to the implementation of this national project through your participation and with some of the participants becoming members of the committee that would be formed to set the details of a related study which will be referred to the government. I am also glad to announce on this occasion the annual Interior Ministry Award for the Best National and Loyalty Reinforcement Project. Details about the award will be released later.
I pray to God to be able to succeed in contributing to reinforce the national identity and the spirit of belonging. It is a vital issue, being the foundation to build a modern nation state, which is one of the key goals of HM the King’s reforms project.

Respected Attendees,

There is nothing more painful than losing men who sacrifice their lives for the nation except losing a nation and this will not be allowed by the grace of God. The policemen’s sacrifices have enabled us to confront situations for the truth to be revealed. We have undergone hardships to control and correct the situation. The lesson of these sacrifices to protect our national achievements for Bahrain is to remain a nation of unity and love. The development of nationalism requires big hearts that rise above sectarianism and accommodate all."

Those attending the meeting expressed thanks and appreciation to HE the Interior Minister for his dedication to interact with all sections of society to inform them about the security situation and arrangements. They also hailed the sacrifices made by policemen to safeguard national achievements.

Source: BNA