US Navy officials yesterday played down security fears after an alleged terrorist plot to target ships and sailors came to light. A spokeswoman said the decision to allow the families of US servicemen back to Bahrain after a five-year gap would not be affected by an ongoing case at the High Criminal Court. Two Bahrainis have been accused of smuggling weapons into the country and planning to attack US ships and personnel at Mina Salman. Police believe the pair had met members of an Al Qaeda terrorist cell abroad. But the navy spokeswoman said officials were confident that Bahrain's security forces were taking necessary action to protect their interests. "We have been co-operating with the local authorities on the developments in the case and the way it has been handled has given us the confidence we need to feel safe in Bahrain," she said. The spokeswoman said a decision to have families of US servicemen back was based to a large extent on the navy's confidence in Bahrain's security.
Prosecutors revealed last Tuesday that US ships and personnel in Bahrain were the target of an alleged terror attack uncovered in last April, on the day of the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix. The Bahrainis, aged 22 and 21, were arrested on April 26 when police allegedly seized machine guns, weapons, computer discs and other evidence from their homes in East Riffa. Both deny plotting terror attacks and smuggling weapons and ammunition into the country.
Their arrest came after National Security Agency received information that the 22-year-old unemployed man, of Jordanian origin, had intensified contacts with the cell in Iran. Officers allegedly found tapes, CDs, computers, bank statements and exchange company documents in his house. He then led police to the other defendant, a junior customs officer, who was said to have possessed the smuggled weapons. Police raided his house and allegedly found two machine guns, a pistol, bullets, knives and swords. They were also said to have seized several books on making missiles, rockets, weapons and explosives, and pictures of the American base and Navy ships along with videos on jihad, alleged prosecutors. During questioning, the younger defendant confessed to planning an attack on US forces at Mina Salman, according to court documents.
The men allegedly carried out their plans for the attack during 2007 and 2008, say the papers. They state the men confessed during questioning to smuggling the weapons and ammunition from Jordan. An Interior Ministry statement earlier said the men were part of a terror network plotting attacks in Bahrain and elsewhere in the Gulf. Interior Minister Shaikh Rashid bin Abdulla Al Khalifa said at the time of their arrest that the men were rounded up after allegedly intensifying contacts with the terror cell abroad, travelling to a neighbouring Arab country, buying weapons and ammunition and smuggling them into Bahrain.
Families of US servicemen had left Bahrain in July 2004 amid regional security fears. US Naval Forces Central Command commander Vice-Admiral Bill Gortney earlier said the return of family members was an important sign of the security and stability in the Gulf. The Pentagon had in July 2004 ordered the departure of more than 650 dependents of military personnel and non-emergency defence officials from Bahrain, amid reports that Islamist extremists were planning attacks on US interests.