BAHRAIN: Manama recalls ambassador to Iran, alleging 'blatant interference'

Bahrain on Tuesday recalled its ambassador to Iran after an Iranian foreign ministry spokesman decried the "unacceptable" presence of foreign troops in Bahrain, Iranian state media reported.

Additional security forces from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates entered Bahrain on Tuesday at the behest of the ruling family in order to help "secure government installations" amid widespread anti-government protests.

"The presence of foreign forces and interference in Bahrain's internal affairs is unacceptable and will further complicate the issue," said Ramin Mehmanparast at his weekly news conference in Tehran on Tuesday.

Just a few hours later, Bahrain recalled its ambassador in protest of what Bahraini officials described as "blatant interference" in its internal affairs by Tehran.

Bahraini government loyalists have sought to discredit the protest movement by alleging ties to Iran and the Shiite militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon.

The anti-government protest movement includes Shiite opposition parties who have complained of mistreatment at the hands of the Sunni-dominated government. Protesters maintain they are motivated by political, not sectarian, grievances, and deny any ties to foreign powers.

-- Meris Lutz in Beirut and Ramin Mostaghim in Tehran

Photo: Anti-government protests in Bahrain have entered their fourth week. Credit: Phil Weymouth / AFP/Getty Images

Comments

[Esther Haman]

Iran should teach a lesson to these murdering Wahabi tyrants once and for all. That might be our desire to have something like that ignited between these two Persian Gulf nations and have a full scale war between two Muslim country!! Maybe that is our policy? All along we were trying to drag Iran into a war that would help us jump in to defend our peaceful, Oil reach and freedom loving partners in crime, the house of Saud!!? How low can we get!?

[Esther Haman]

Where in the world Minority has the right to rule over the Majority of people? These tyrants have disregarded any Human right known to man kind and have had total disregard for their own people well being. Their attempt to hold on to power by murdering their own people is criminal. The self declared fascist Wahabi tyrants of the Bahrain have not seen the end of their murderous action. Freedom will come to Bahrain now or later.

[Esther Haman]

Yeh, Iran is made into scape goat once again for these new Arab Revolts in Bahrain or any where else. It is very strange at best why this crackdown and foreign troops infusion in to Bahrain took place right after defense Secretary Robert Gate visited the Island of Bahrain!! Isn't it? We in US talk and boast about love of democracy, but it is clear that we lie with actions such as this. Freedom is for us to do what we want and the Arabs or the Muslims of this world have to gain it by dieing for theirs. This is another shameful interferen­ce by us to squash voices who demand freedom from these Wahabi tyrants. we will see this policy of our to backfire once more, no doubt about it. Freedom will come to Bahrain one way or another.

[FatimaMahdi]

Why the sudden acting out by Iran? Worried about the minions I presume. I refuse to be represented by a rebel Shi'a political party trying to enforce Iran's agenda on the good people of Bahrain. These parties and their acts of terrorism in the different areas of the Country do not represent the entire Shia community of Bahrain.

[DavidN]

Are we witnessing development of war between Saudi Arabia and its friends from one side and Iran and its allies from another ?

[Andreas Moser]

Bahrain blaming Iran. Iran blaming the US. The whole Middle East blaming Israel. - Will anyone ever come up with new culprits? (Not that Iran is not guilty of meddling in all kind of ways, but they are not behind these protests. If there is anything that Iran doesn't like, it's street protests that overthrow regimes.)