Bahrain Mirror: Bahrain's Interior Minister Rashid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa left for London, where he met his British counterpart Amber Rudd, as part of his official visit to the UK.

An official statement said that the British Home Secretary supported Bahrain's stances and affirmed that "Britain was ready to continue constructive cooperation with the Kingdom in security fields."

For his part, the Interior Minister appreciated the proactive counter-terrorism initiative by Rudd, referring to her request to the UK parliament to classify outlawed Bahraini groups as terrorist organisations. He further praised the security cooperation between the two countries, adding that it is historical and not something recent.

The Minister briefed Rudd on the security situation in Bahrain and the "terrorist threats" it is facing, claiming that "fugitive terrorists living in Iran stand behind those crimes in terms of planning and implementation, for which they receive support and financing from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard."

The Minister agreed with his UK counterpart to review the bilateral security agreement so as to support cooperation related to training and exchange of information, especially on new crimes, also stressing "their understanding of the security risks posed by social media, especially since some people are using them to promote sedition, incitement and crimes."

The Minister also met a number of UK MPs. He was welcomed by Lord John Astor and Rehman Chishti, Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party and a member of the Internal Affairs committee.

Arabic Version