Bahrain tightens security over regional unrest
Manama slams ‘terror and heinous’ attack on Saudi oil facilities
Manama: The Bahraini government has ordered heightened security around the country’s state institutions due to rising regional tensions, state media reported on Tuesday.
Prime Minister Khalifa Bin Salman Al Khalifa instructed at a cabinet meeting tightening precautionary security measures around the vital installations, citing “fast-paced regional developments”, Bahraini newspaper Al Youm said.
On Saturday, a drone attack targeted major oil facilities in Saudi Arabia, disrupting production. Yemen’s Iran-alliged Al Houthi militants claimed the attack, which the US has blamed on Tehran.
An Arab alliance, fighting Al Houthis in Yemen, said that initial investigations showed that the attack has been carried out by Iranian-made weapons.
Bahrain, an ally of Saudi Arabia, has condemned the attack, calling it a “terrorist and heinous act”.
The Bahraini government said that the attack constituted a “dangerous escalation and threat” to global energy supplies and the world economy, according to the state news agency BNA.
The attack has fuelled tensions in the Gulf. It has also heightened global fears of the flow of energy supplies from Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter.