Iran orders Bahraini Embassy No.2 official to leave in 3 days

Iran’s Foreign Ministry has declared Bahrain’s second-ranking diplomat in Tehran persona non grata and given him 72 hours to leave the country, a day after Bahrain withdrew its ambassador, Iranian media reported on Friday.

The Gulf kingdom of Bahrain, with a majority Shiite Muslim population ruled by a Sunni dynasty, has suffered from unrest since a pro-democracy uprising in 2011.

There was no immediate response from Iranian officials over the expulsion of the Iranian diplomat, identified by the state-run Bahrain News Agency as Mohammad Reza Babai.

The minister was quoted as saying the move was sparked by Iran’s “continued unacceptable interference in the internal affairs” of Bahrain. Shaikh Khalid presented the UN Secretary General a book documenting the strong relationship and fruitful cooperation extended over the years between the Kingdom of Bahrain and the United Nations, praising the tangible worldwide efforts to establish a world that is more secure and prosperous. Bahrain is part of a Saudi-led coalition targeting Shiite rebels in Yemen who are backed by Iran.

The coalition accuses Iran of arming rebels in Bahrain and Yemen.

However, Bahraini authorities announced late Wednesday they had seized 1.5 tons of explosives at a suspected militant hideout in a warehouse south of the capital, Manama.

The cache included a tonne and a half of C4 explosives and other explosive material, as well as automatic rifles, pistols and hand grenades, the ministry said.

A statement by the Interior Ministry said: “After investigations, those arrested were found to have close links to terrorist elements in Iraq and Iran”, but the ministry did not disclose the number of those arrested or their affiliations.