Nagham Al-Faytrouni: New Version of Al-Bandar Project in Bahrain with Israeli Interest at Forefront

Nagham Faytrouni - 2022-11-07 - 7:07 p

Sixteen years after the Bahraini king's former adviser Dr. Salah Al-Bandar uncovered what he described as a political conspiracy aimed at changing Bahrain's demographic makeup, fears are rising again over Al Khalifa creating a new version of this conspiracy or an Isralei version of "Al-Bandar Project", as Bahrainis call it. This project contributes to the further exclusion of an essential component of the Bahraini people, but this time serving the interest of Zionist Jewish people, amid the relentless official quest to bring them into the country, by all means, and to ensure an atmosphere of "decent living conditions for them, in a way that guarantees their privacy." This is what the regime has actually started with what they called the "Jewish Neighborhood" that aims at judaizing 40% of the ancient Manama.

A Failed Attempt to Integrate Zionists into Bahraini Society 

The facilitations provided by the regime in Bahrain to the Israelis, and the establishment of their presence within society under the pretext of coexistence, cannot be considered logical, especially since the number of the Jewish community members in the country does not exceed 50, the majority of whom are elderly, and since this community has always lived in peace from the moment they arrived to the country at the end of the 19th century, coming from Iraq, Iran and India, before their number later decreased, between 1948 and 1967, as a result the occupation of Palestine. Today; however, almost two years after the signing of the public normalization agreement between Manama and Tel Aviv, Al Khalifa continues to chant slogans of coexistence, openness and living in peace, and how it's necessary that the Jewish community enjoys full comfort within the structure of Bahraini society. Of course, they do not mean the followers of Judaism, but rather Zionist Israelis, and seek, at the behest of the United States, to establish themselves in Bahrain, through multiple temptations, which will not end with Al Khalifa's claims to fight off the Iranian threat.

The establishment of the Zionist presence in the island of Bahrain-despite the overwhelming popular rejection-which began with the "Jewish Neighborhood" project in the Bahraini capital, Manama, may not be enough, according to official calculations, to ensure the establishment of Israeli presence in the Bahraini community and gradually turn this entity to a fait accompli. This raises concerns that the authorities would play the catastrophic "political naturalization" card, which has been previously used during Al-Bandar time. The authorities continue to use this strategy today, in an effort to change the demographic map of the country, which worries the regime, especially in light of its preoccupation with circumventing and maneuvering to cover up the issues of the political crisis, instead of solving them and embracing all components of the population. The authorities now are seeking, with all possible means, to expand the circle of Jewish presence in the country, through several successive steps. First and foremost is to guarantee the so-called mechanisms of "reunification", which the former Shura Council member, Ibrahim Nounou, previously referred to in October 2020, and considered that the Bahraini King's decision on normalization with Israel will contribute to the return of Jewish Bahrainis to the region so that they could "visit the graves of ancestors", and "reunite" with Jewish families. The authorities will then adopt deeper steps that will go as far as attracting Zionist Jewish people to live in the country, starting with the planned Jewish neighborhood in Manama until the desired goal is met through the falsification of the capital's identity and sharing its geography with Israelis, while excluding the existence of a main national component. This indicates there are official intentions aimed at settling Israelis and granting them Bahraini citizenships. The citizenship has become very easy to obtain, to the extent that it is being marketed and offered through "Haraj" website, the largest Saudi buying and selling platform, similar to what took place in 2015.

Bahrain's Naturalization of Zionists is only a Matter of Time

The naturalization and settlement of Israelis in Bahrain is not something unlikely to happen in light of the Jewish appetite for strengthening the Zionist presence in Bahrain, and offering many options to the regime to help it accomplish this, such as the need to have a Bahraini rabbi, and the need to establish a Jewish school to keep pace with the expected increase in the number of this community's members, as well as many other proposals. Since Al Khalifa are pioneers in following their Gulf brothers, especially the UAE, which has been open in their normalization as Bahrain has been, the naturalization of Israelis is only a matter of time, considering that the UAE approved, early last year, amendments to the law of granting citizenship, which is a valuable opportunity that will be seized by hundreds of thousands of Israelis, especially since it does not include any ban on their nationality, as Zionist businessmen are capable, both physically and logistically, of owning real estate in the country and injecting huge investments in them, as well as establishing artificial intelligence industries, which means that the opportunity is favorable for them to benefit from the new law. This was mentioned in an article by Israeli analyst of the Hebrew Haaretz newspaper, Zvi Bar'el, who saw these amendments as an opportunity for the Israelis, not only to work in the UAE, but to obtain its citizenship as well, which will enable them to visit countries that they are prohibited from visiting. Indeed, this scheme was realized on the ground, with the "Emirates Leaks" website revealing in July 2021 that 5,000 Israelis had acquired UAE citizenship within 3 months, under the guise of investment, especially in the emirates of Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Therefore, anyone who closely monitors Manama's foreign policy frameworks becomes sure that the usual "retweet" policy will be repeated this time. Thousands of Israelis will find Bahrain a safe and easy haven that enables them to obtain citizenship and settle in the country.

With all the aforementioned, it is safe to say that the stage, today, requires a deterrent move in the face of the official steps taken by the Bahraini government, which are attempts aiming to naturalize Israelis and integrate them into Bahraini society. The regime hopes to gain an acceptable amount of falsely purchased legitimacy and establish a foothold for Zionists in the land of Bahrain, in a manner that would guarantee tampering with the population, and transforming the current majority into a minority deprived of rights and political representation, as a result of the isolation. This is a very dangerous scheme that the regime strives to establish through gambling with the security of the country, as well as targeting the demography of Bahrain, which it has failed to change once before.

Nagham Al-Faytrouni - Lebanese journalist - Al Mayadeen

Translated by Bahrain Mirror


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