Bahrain's High Criminal Court on Tuesday issued life imprisonment sentences for three defendants accused of colluding with Iran's Revolutionary Guard and carrying out hostile acts against the Kingdom of Bahrain.

The court also issued prison sentences of up to five years for ten other defendants on charges of committing 'acts of violence and sabotage coinciding with the heinous Iranian attacks on the country.'

Regarding the three defendants sentenced to life imprisonment, the head of the Terrorism Crimes Prosecution in Bahrain stated that during its session on Tuesday, the High Criminal Court issued two verdicts in two separate cases related to collusion with a hostile foreign state. Three defendants were accused of colluding with Iran's Revolutionary Guard and those working for its benefit, aiding it in its hostile and terrorist acts against the Kingdom of Bahrain and harming its interests. The court sentenced them all to life imprisonment and ordered the confiscation of seized items.

The prosecution chief said the details of the first incident 'go back to information confirmed by investigations of the General Directorate of Criminal Investigation and Evidence that the first defendant, who is security-wanted and abroad, working for the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, recruited the second defendant in the Kingdom of Bahrain to provide him with information on vital locations in the kingdom to target during the brutal Iranian aggression.'

He added: 'The details of the second incident go back to information confirmed by investigations of the General Directorate of Criminal Investigation and Evidence that the defendant communicated with an electronic account run by the terrorist Iranian Revolutionary Guard and provided it with video clips of the heinous Iranian terrorist attacks on vital facilities in the Kingdom of Bahrain, in addition to sending a number of locations and coordinates of vital sites inside the country to be targeted by the enemy, threatening the security and safety of the Kingdom of Bahrain and the lives of its citizens and residents.'

The Public Prosecution immediately initiated investigations into both incidents upon receiving the reports, interrogating the two defendants present in the country, listening to witness testimonies, and appointing technical experts to examine the seized electronic devices. The investigations concluded that the data and information provided by the defendants to Iran's Revolutionary Guard 'formed a fundamental pillar in the heinous hostile Iranian terrorist attacks that targeted a number of vital and important facilities within the Kingdom of Bahrain, thereby endangering the security and stability of the country.'

He added: 'Accordingly, the Public Prosecution ordered the referral of the defendants to the High Criminal Court. The two cases were heard separately over several sessions, during which all legal guarantees were observed, including the presence of defense lawyers and enabling them to present their defense, until the court issued its aforementioned verdict during Tuesday's session.'

In this context, the Public Prosecution emphasizes that the crime of collusion with foreign states hostile to the Kingdom of Bahrain is one of the most serious crimes affecting national security, as it enables those states to obtain information that can be exploited to carry out hostile acts targeting the kingdom and its interests. The Public Prosecution also stresses its determination, within the framework of its legal authority, to firmly confront anyone who commits such criminal acts and to take deterrent legal measures against them to preserve the security and stability of the country.

Prison sentences for 10 defendants

The head of the Terrorism Crimes Prosecution also stated that during its session on Tuesday, the High Criminal Court issued two verdicts in two separate cases involving ten defendants who committed crimes of violence and sabotage during the heinous Iranian attacks on the Kingdom of Bahrain last March. The court sentenced them to prison terms of up to five years and ordered the confiscation of seized items.

The details of the two incidents go back to the Public Prosecution receiving two reports from the competent security department at the Ministry of Interior that the defendants were arrested red-handed at the scenes of the two incidents after their participation in acts of violence and sabotage that coincided with the heinous Iranian attacks on the Kingdom of Bahrain, and they were presented to the Public Prosecution.