Bahrain has foiled a terror plot to blow up three pipelines and target public figures, an interior ministry official said on Wednesday evening.
The acts of sabotage and terror were to be carried out by terrorists trained in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard camps, Public Security Chief Tariq Al Hassan said.
The plot was thwarted after security officials identified a terror cell and arrested one suspect who targeted a police bus with a homemade bomb on October 27, killing one policeman and injuring nine others.
His accomplice in the attack on the police bus fled to Iran after carrying out the crime, Al Hassan said.
The cell members had received extensive training in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard camps on the use and making of explosives and firearms as well as providing support, equipment and logistical support.
The members went to Syria in October 2011 and then on to Iran without stamping their passports at the Syrian and Iranian borders. They also travelled to Iran again in July 2017, Al Hassan added.
The cell includes four other fugitives convicted or wanted in cases linked to terrorist activities.
The training they received at the hands of Iranian instructors included the making and use of improvised explosive devices, light explosive devices, detonators and Kalashnikovs.
In Bahrain, the cell members rented an apartment and used it as a workshop to make the explosives that were used in attacks on police patrols in Sitra on February 12 and 14 and in another assault on August 13.
The cell also targeted police officers who were on duty to help secure Ashoora processions on October 2, wounding five and a police bus on October 27, killing Salman Anjam and wounding nine, Al Hassan said.
The cell also stole plates of private cars and heavy vehicles and used them in the cars that carried them to crime scenes.
Legal measures have been taken to refer the case to the Public Prosecution while investigations are still underway to arrest the remaining terrorists and anyone with links to the cell.