Bahrain Mirror: Al-Wefaq MP, Ali Al-Aswad, said that Saudi Arabia has presented Bahrain as a trial balloon to see the regional reaction regarding normalization with Israel.

He said in a seminar entitled "Towards Arab Strategy to Resist Normalization" organized by Al-Wefaq on September 19, 2020 in the West Bank in cooperation with Palestinian Ibdaa institution that "Bahrain as a state has no political, economic or geographic weight that qualifies it to be in second place among the normalizing countries, and that it has always followed Saudi Arabia in its decisions."

He added that "the latter used Bahrain as bait, or as a trial balloon to check the local, international and regional reactions, in order to avoid embarrassment, since it contains the most important Islamic holy sites represented by the Two Holy Mosques"

"The normalizing step taken by the UAE and the Kingdom of Bahrain is a ground for a joint Saudi-American-Zionist decision for a new Middle East," he stressed.

This is done "under the cover of outdated justifications such as confronting the Iranian threat in the region," he expressed.

States will fall apart, one after another, Al-Aswad said, pointing out the US president's statement in which he said that "After Bahrain and the UAE, there is a possibility that Kuwait will be the third," despite earlier Kuwaiti official statements saying that it would be "the last to normalize".

"The legislative authority in Bahrain is robbed of its will and decision, as it belongs to the executive authority," Al-Aswad said, adding that "the parliamentary committee on supporting the Palestinian cause has taken the same official position under the pretexts of peace."

Al-Aswad further spoke about the popular stance in Bahrain, explaining that "the rejection was expressed by signing statements and demonstrations (...) This is a step that reflects the steadfastness and stability of the Bahraini people's stance, because this time it did not only challenge the possibility of a crackdown on power, but also faced the repercussions of the recent increase of Coronavirus outbreak."

The former MP apologized on behalf of the Bahraini people to the people of Palestine, stressing that Bahrainis know that Palestinians understand "the total absence of the people in such authoritarian regimes, which rule with a unilateral will and administration."

Arabic Version