Bahrain to take ‘legal steps’ against critics of deal with Israel

Bahraini man waving a national flag (L) and Israeli man holding his country’s national flag, 11 September 2020 [JOSEPH EID,JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images]

The Bahraini Interior Ministry has pledged to take “legal steps” against social media activists who criticise the normalisation deal with Israel, news agencies reported yesterday.

The General Directorate of Anti-Corruption and Economic and Electronic Crimes, affiliated to the Interior Ministry, said in a statement that it was monitoring social media accounts that are working to “defame” Bahrain as a result of its agreement with Israel.

It claimed that these accounts “spread sedition” and pose a threat to national peace and stability and are run by “fugitives” out of the country.

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On 11 September, US President Donald Trump announced that Bahrain had agreed to normalise ties with Israel. It was later signed at the White House.

Bahrain opposition and NGOs along with Palestinians have criticised the agreement and slammed it as a stab in the back of Palestinians.

Israel, Bahrain fully normalise diplomatic relations – Cartoon [Sabaaneh/MiddleEastMonitor]

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