By REBECCA TORR , Tuesday, May 17, 2011
SUPPORTERS of the National Unity Gathering were ready to confront a so-called Iranian “aid” flotilla if the ships had been allowed to reach Bahrain’s shores.
Iran’s Press TV channel reported that two boats carrying Iranian “activists” had set sail yesterday in a show of solidarity with anti-government protesters.
The English-language network showed live footage of the boats leaving the port town of Dayyer in the southern province of Bushehr, setting sail for international waters in the Gulf.
But later it reported that the ships were ordered to return home. The channel’s reporter, travelling on board one of ships, said in a live broadcast that the boats were returning and activists were throwing in the water letters they were carrying as “moral support” to Bahraini Shi’ites.
The 120 activists featured students, scholars and physicians as well as women and children.
Earlier, one of the organisers of the flotilla, Islamic Revolution Supporters Society secretary-general Mehdi Egharian, told the Fars news agency that no “armed personnel” were on board the boats.
The activists were only carrying the “moral support” of the Iranian people in the form of 5,000 letters, he said.
Iranian Islamic Shura Council Human Rights committee vice-president Mohammed Kareem Aabdi told the agency the humanitarian help was being offered to Bahrainis and not the government, claiming it had no authority to stop them.
National Unity Gathering media vice-president and former MP Nasser Al Fadhala said that had the flotilla reached Bahrain, the organisation and Bahrainis had been ready to protest and tell the Iranians to go home.
“We won’t accept this kind of activity coming from Iran and we are already boycotting goods from Iran,” he told the GDN.
“It’s not a matter of helping people in Bahrain, it is propaganda. We are not occupied in Bahrain and not under siege and we won’t accept this.
“If they intend to send another ship, I think people will go to the shore and tell them to go back.
“They are doing this to support their own people which are only certain groups of Shi’ites they are supporting because they failed to bring the regime down.
“If Iranian ships reach the shores of Bahrain in the future, we, as National Unity Gathering, will have signs in Persian, Arabic and English saying “go out, we don’t need your help in Bahrain – go back to your people in Iran who are having shortage of food, electricity and water’.”
Kuwaiti Navy sources told Kuwaiti newspaper Al Anba’a that, as part of the Peninsula Shield forces, it was also ready to protect Bahrain’s waters from any foreign enemy.
“Any attack on an inch of Bahrain’s land is an act against Kuwait and we will do our best to protect it,” they said.
“We still respect Iran as a neighbouring Muslim country, but we warn against trying to intimidate the GCC … and trying to test the military abilities of the GCC.”
Mr Al Fadhala said if Iran was smart it would not attempt to enter Bahrain’s shores with any explosives.
“I don’t think if they have any sense they will try to commit suicide bombings because the Coastguard will stop and search them before they come on land and see what they have on their ship,” he said.
Mr Fadhala said Al Asala bloc MP Ghanim Al Buainain and Independent MP Jassim Al Saeedi had announced plans to send aid shipments from Bahrain to help Iranian Arabs in Ahwaz, Iran, in need of humanitarian support.
“From Bahrain they will send an aid flotilla to Iran,” he said.
“I think this is also propaganda. If they (Iran) come near our country we can play the same trick.”
The GDN reported yesterday that a former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) spy said supporters of Iran’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei were planning to launch a new confrontation with Bahrain.
The Iranian, who operates under the pseudonym Reza Khalili, said the radical Islamic organisation Ansar Hizbollah, consisting of Islamist thugs and ardent supporters of the figurehead had assembled volunteers for a martyrdom mission.
He claimed they were also preparing suicide bombers in co-ordination with the Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ Quds Force for attacks on Bahraini and Saudi interests.
