ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Four Bahraini nationals have been arrested over their alleged collaboration with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Manama’s interior ministry announced on Thursday, adding that a fifth suspect has also been identified.
In a statement carried by the state-run Bahrain News Agency (BNA), the ministry said the General Directorate of Criminal Investigation and Forensic Science “managed to arrest four Bahraini individuals and identify a fifth suspect who is a fugitive abroad” over their involvement in “communicating and coordinating” with the IRGC through “terrorist elements located in Iran.”
Authorities said “investigations revealed that the first suspect, acting on organizational instructions and with assistance from the others, photographed and collected coordinates of vital and sensitive locations across the Kingdom of Bahrain using high-precision imaging equipment.
“The materials were then sent to the IRGC through encrypted applications,” the statement added.
The suspects - four men and one woman aged between 22 and 36 - have had the necessary legal procedures taken against them and have been referred to the public prosecution, the ministry said.
The development comes as the Iran-Israel-US war entered its thirteenth day on Thursday, after Washington and Tel Aviv launched a joint campaign against Iran on February 28, with bombardments largely targeting security and military installations.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said earlier on Thursday that its forces have struck more than 5,500 targets in Iran since the beginning of the operation, dubbed Operation Epic Fury, noting that the campaign aims to dismantle Tehran’s security apparatus.
In response, Iran launched a multi-front retaliation to the US-Israeli campaign, deploying hundreds of drones as well as ballistic and cruise missiles against alleged US targets across the region, including in all six Gulf Cooperation Council states - Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.