As part of counter-terrorism efforts, the security authorities have carried out a proactive security operation – codenamed “The Axe” – intended to apprehend members of the terrorist organisation, Saraya Al Ashtar.

The operation was successful, with several terrorists detained. In addition, bomb making equipment and high grade explosives were discovered and neutralised in an intelligence-led raid on a suspected storage site in Al Dair.
A preliminary investigation revealed that members of the terrorist group had filmed bomb-making experiments and then sent those videos to known terrorism leaders in Iran, to improve manufacturing operations. After the Public Prosecutor was notified and the appropriate security and legal procedures had been undertaken, counter-terrorism and anti-explosive teams were deployed to the site to take the necessary steps to secure the area. The forensic team gathered samples of the explosives to determine their types in order to remove them to a safe location. The crime scene team classified and seized the explosives in the presence of the Public Prosecutor.

 

Up to 52 KG of high-grade TNT explosives, including C4, urea nitrate, ammonium nitrate and raw materials, were discovered at the scene. Explosives experts estimated that the equipment had a potential to impact a 600 metre radius, posing a significant threat to the surrounding residential area.

Laboratory tests revealed that many of the seized explosives could not have been made in Bahrain. In addition, certain materials were linked to those seized during several other recent cases, including Dar Kulaib warehouse case in June 2015.

Confiscations included:

· Ready-to-use bomb containing high-grade C4
· Ready-to-use anti-personnel bomb and partly developed bomb materials
· Explosive penetrator
· Locally-made tasers and electronic circuits
· Scale to measure explosives
· Diagrams on bomb-making
· Ammunition
· Mobile phones, remote controls and batteries

 

Evidence and intelligence gathered during the investigation linked cell members to a series of recent attacks and terrorist plots, including:

· Terror blast in Abu Saiba on 4 February 2017, in which a police patrol was targeted and two civilian cars in the vicinity were damaged
· Terror blast in Sanabis, in which a female driver was injured
· Grenade attack on security forces in Samaheej on 7 April 2017

Arrestees:

Two terrorist cells were identified and arrested over the course of the operation.

Terrorist suspects in the first cell included:

· Sayed Ahmed Mahdi Kadhem, 20
· Isa Hassan Isa Ali, 20

· Ali Dawood Ahmed Dawood Al Aradi

· Hassan Shakir Hassan Ali, 21

· Maitham Ali Hassan Ali Hassan, 20

Members of the second cell included two convicted terrorists known to have targeted security forces:

· Abdullah Abdulmahdi Hassan Al Aradi, 24
· Loay Hani Saood Hussain Al Muamen, 19

The investigation revealed that the two cells are linked to a known convicted terrorist and fugitive Hussain Ali Ahmed Dawood, 31, based in Iran.

Hussain Ali Ahmed Dawood was sentenced to life imprisonment for his involvement in three separate cases. He has close connections to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Murtadha Al Sindi, and receives support by:

· Salman Ali Salman Ali Ibrahim, 26, convicted for bomb making and possession of illegal explosives

· Ahmed Abdulmahdi Hassan Al Aradi, 22, convicted for security disturbance case, attacks against police patrols and arson.

· Yasser Ahmed Habib Ibrahim, 31, convicted in cases related to arson and attacks against police patrols

 

An investigation is ongoing into the group’s links to other terrorist cells operating in the Kingdom. The Interior Ministry calls on members of the public to report any suspicious activity by calling the community hotline 80008008. (MOI)

Source: Fana News