Investigation Launched into Hezbollah Linked Terror Cell; Female Suspect Affiliated to Organization Founded by US Designated Terrorist
Chief of Terror Crime Prosecution Advocate General Ahmed AI Hammadi announced that an investigation had been launched in the case of forming an illegal organization with the aim of obstructing the law, preventing the state from exercising its responsibilities, assaulting personal freedom and harming national unity.
Members of this cell subscribe to Hezbollah’s ideology and maintain direct links with high-ranking Hezbollah officials in South Lebanon and other listed terrorists currently harbored in Iran. These include leaders of Saraya Al Ashtar militia, who were designated terrorists by the United States, and others based in London and Berlin.
The individuals were remanded based on evidence collected, namely running a radicalized Iranian-backed cell and maintaining direct contact with known terrorists including those who claimed lethal attacks in Bahrain. Investigations also revealed that the founder of the terror cell received support for its activities from Lebanese Hezbollah through a Bahraini national who worked for the terror group and resided in Lebanon.
Communication was intercepted including emails and messages confirming coordination and cooperation between the Bahrain-based Hezbollah cell and a high-ranking Hezbollah official.
Ebtisam Al Sayegh, a member of the cell, was in close contact with the radical groups like Tayar Al Wafa and Tayar al Haq, as well as members of Saraya Al Ashtar based in Berlin and London. Moreover, Al Sayegh has worked closely with Al Karama foundation, whose founder was previously listed by the US Treasury Department as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist.
Baqer Darwish, another cell member, is a Bahraini national based in Lebanon with connections to Hezbollah and other militia leaders. He is suspected to be the intermediary who provided guidance and received financing from Hezbollah through a monthly stipend.
The activities of these individuals pose a direct threat to Bahrain’s national security and those of our allies’ regional interests. AI Hammadi stated that four suspects were arrested and the public prosecution questioned two of them in the presence of their lawyers. The suspects were remanded in custody pending further investigations.
