BahrainSaudi ArabiaWest Asia

FM Official Discloses Riyadh’s Attempts to Improve Bahrain-Israel Ties

13940404000302_PhotoI

 

An informed source in Bahrain’s foreign ministry disclosed on Thursday that Saudi Arabia is attempting to bring Manama and Tel Aviv closer to each other.

The source told FNA that Bahraini King’s son Prince Nasser Bin Hamad al-Khalifa has been chosen to take part in the talks to improve relations between Bahrain and Israel.

The source referred to the expanding ties between Riyadh and Tel Aviv, and said, “Saudi Arabia seeks to further suppress the Bahraini revolution through political relations between Bahrain and Israel.”

The source added that the bilateral meeting between the Saudi, Bahraini and Israeli officials is due to be held in Riyadh in the next few days.

Anti-government protesters have been holding peaceful demonstrations across Bahrain since mid-February 2011, calling for an end to the al-Khalifa dynasty’s over-40-year rule, end of discrimination, establishment of justice and a democratically-elected government as well as freedom of detained protesters.

Violence against the defenseless people escalated after a Saudi-led conglomerate of police, security and military forces from the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council (PGCC) member states – Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Qatar – were dispatched to the tiny Persian Gulf kingdom on March 13, 2011, to help Manama crack down on peaceful protests.

So far, hundreds of people have been killed, hundreds more have gone missing and thousands of others have been injured.

Saudi Arabia has been meddling in Bahrain’s internal affairs for a long period of time.

One of the documents gained and released by the Yemen Cyber Army after its May hacking of the Saudi Foreign Ministry has disclosed the strong attempts made by Saudi Arabia to convince the western powers to supply the Bahraini regime with the needed weapons to crack down on the revolution in the Persian Gulf island state.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry was hacked by the Yemen Cyber Army in May, and a copy of its information was sent to FNA and another one to the whistleblower website WikiLeaks.

One of the YCA-released documents reveals that the Saudi government has sent similar letters to the then British Foreign Secretary, William Hague, and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, asking them to intervene to lift the arms embargo on Bahrain, claiming the country is facing serious security challenges and violent acts supported by other regional forces.

In January 2013, sources in Bahrain and several media outlets in the West disclosed that the Manama rulers have secretly signed military and security agreements with the West, specially the US and the UK, to purchase military and anti-riot grid to crack down on protests.

Also, another document released by the YCA disclosed Riyadh’s deep concerns about media coverage of Bahraini uprising, fearing that the world media might soon focus on the Saudi regime’s suppressive policies.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry was hacked by the Yemen Cyber Army in May, and a copy of its information was sent to FNA and another one to the whistleblower website WikiLeaks.

One of the documents released by the YCA shows that the Riyadh government sees Bahrain as an endangered base for Saudi Arabia, where a news coverage of the popular uprising by the world media could lead to the overthrow of its allied regime and further spread to Saudi Arabia.

The document shows former Saudi Minister of Culture and Information Abdulaziz Khojah informed the late King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in 2012 that Bahrain has become a state where Saudi Arabia is targeted.

The cable revealed that Saudi Arabia has kept close tabs on international media coverage on Bahrain, monitoring media outlets which covered the protests of the Bahraini people.

Khojah also stated that his ministry noticed that a number of foreign media outlets as well as study and research centers have made Bahrain a place to criticize the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, its authorities and policy towards the events taking place in the region, while slamming the Bahraini leadership on a routine basis.

The document, labeled “secret” and “urgent”, discoles that Riyadh gives a harsh response to any kind of criticism toward the royal family.

The former minister has also indicated in the document that Reuters’ correspondent Andrew Hammond, “who is famous for his enmity towards our wise leadership”, had to be expelled from Saudi Arabia due to his news reports.

Back to top button