Bahrain jails 138 for planning Iran-linked 'terror' group

They received prison terms for having tried to build a Bahrain Hezbollah: prosecutor

DUBAI: Bahrain on Tuesday jailed 138 people and revoked their citizenship for plotting to form a "terror" group with links to Iran's Revolutionary Guards, the public prosecutor said.

They received prison terms of three years to life for having tried to build a Bahrain Hezbollah, similar to the militia active in Lebanon, said Ahmad al-Hammadi.

Some members had received military training in Lebanon, Iran and Iraq, he said in a statement.

Another man was also jailed but his citizenship was not revoked, while 30 others were acquitted, said the statement posted on the prosecution Instagram account.

A judicial source said all the defendants are members of the Shia community in the Sunni-ruled Gulf state.

The source also said that 111 were already in custody while 58 were sentenced in absentia.

Bahrain's population is majority Shia, according to unofficial estimates that are contested by the government.

Authorities have jailed dozens of high-profile activists and disbanded both religious and secular opposition groups since protests demanding political change erupted in 2011.

They have stripped hundreds of those convicted of their citizenship, leaving many stateless.