Terrorism is a scourge that must be eradicated and doing so requires resolute action, a firm hand and the sternest penalties for those who take life in pursuit of a narrow political cause. On Monday, Bahrain executed three men who had been charged, investigated and found guilty of the callous and premeditated murder of three policemen, one of which was an Emirati officer on secondment to assist his Arab brothers. The three had planted a roadside bomb, provoked a street riot to lure on security officials and then detonated it with the intent of killing and maiming. It was an act of terror.
The executions were carried out under the provisions of Bahrain’s internal laws, the three were prosecuted and tried according to the standards and procedures set out by that sovereign nation. The jurisdictional and jurisprudence processes of appeals and the exercise of that ultimate sanction is a matter purely for Bahrain.
It is unbecoming for other nations to interfere, particular even more so when those comments come from a former prime minister. In Baghdad, Iraqi Vice-President Nouri Al Maliki called the executions of the three “an ugly crime”.
Let’s be clear on this: The deliberate and premeditated decision to make a bomb with the sole intent of killing, is an ugly crime. So too is planting it by the roadside. And so too is organising a street riot. And what’s most ugly is then choosing to detonate it while security officials are attempting to restore law and order for the safety of all Bahrainis.
What is “ugly” is Al Maliki failing to recognise that. He need only look within his own borders to see what weak action against terrorists has wrought.
