Manama: Authorities in Bahrain said they had foiled an attempt to smuggle bomb-making materials on a bus coming from Iraq through King Fahad Causeway, the 25-kilometre long terrestrial link with Saudi Arabia.
A man wanted by the police in a different case was also identified and arrested, a statement attributed to the General Director of King Fahad Causeway said.
“The identification occurred as part of the crime prevention and interdiction efforts at the border in cooperation with Customs Affairs,” he said. “While normal security procedures were being carried out for the bus, the authorities identified one of the passengers as a wanted fugitive in another criminal case. During a search of the bus, customs personnel found bomb-making materials,” he said in the statement carried by Bahrain News Agency (BNA).
The materials were seized while the legal procedures were followed and the Public Prosecution was notified, he added.
The King Fahad Causeway, opened on November 26, 1986, is Bahrain’s only terrestrial link with neighbouring Saudi Arabia.
It achieved a milestone on February 28 when 100,643 people crossed it, the highest one-day figure since the opening of the causeway.
According to the figures released in Manama, 62,266 used the causeway to depart from Bahrain and 38,377 to arrive in the island kingdom on that day.
Statistics indicate that around 80 per cent of the people who arrive in Bahrain or leave the kingdom now use the causeway.
In September, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia announced the construction of a new terrestrial link between them, the King Hamad Causeway.
The new causeway, expected to be 25 kilometres long, will run in parallel with the existing King Fahd Causeway and will be used by passenger trains, freight trains and vehicles.
The separate train connections will be part of the wider Gu;f Cooperation Council (GCC) 2,170-km railway network.
