Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marzieh Afkham on Sunday dismissed as baseless the allegations made by Bahraini Foreign Minister Khalid Bin Ahmed Al Khalifa in an interview with London-based Arabic newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat.
The Iranian official advised the Bahraini government to put aside its security-police approach instead of engaging in blame-shifting games and making baseless allegations with an aim to cover up its own internal issues.
Manama has faced international criticism on multiple occasions by prominent human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch for state crackdown on pro-democracy protests, including detention of activists, violent methods to disperse demonstrators, and a media blackout on rallies.Thousands of protesters have held numerous demonstrations on the streets since anti-regime movement began in mid-February 2011. Large numbers of people have been killed and hundreds of others injured and arrested in the crackdown on peaceful protests ever since.
Afkham further addressed the Bahraini government to start thinking about the resolution of its internal crisis which is only possible through “real political dialog with your own people.”
In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat on Thursday, Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Khalid Bin Ahmed Al Khalifa alleged that Iran is the cause of religious divisions in the region. He also repeated the same unfounded allegation that Bahrain had seized explosives and bomb-making materials in a village near the capital Manama in June in what it claimed was an Iranian attempt to subvert the island kingdom.
In July, Afkham asserted that Bahrain is using repetitive "baseless accusations" to create tensions in the region. The monarchy has repeatedly accused Iran of interfering in its internal affairs. Iran has strongly denied any such action stating that it only supports attempts to address human rights violations in the tiny Persian Gulf state.
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