AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The February 14 Coalition of Bahrain, issuing a statement, emphasized that the deployment of the U.S. Fifth Fleet in Manama and the presence of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) indicate Bahrain's direct role in directing Washington's military operations in the region.
The coalition, referring to the frequent visits of Brad Cooper, the commander of U.S. Central Command, to Bahrain and his meetings with the king and security officials of the country, announced that these visits indicate the dependence of Bahrain's security and military decisions on the U.S. presence.
The February 14 Coalition added that the Al Khalifa family considers the U.S. military presence a guarantee for its own survival, and this has made U.S. bases a determining factor in Bahrain's governance structure, domestic politics, and foreign relations; an issue that, from the coalition's perspective, is a clear violation of Bahrain's national sovereignty and a sign of the country's complete dependence on the United States.
The statement said that with the beginning of the U.S. and Zionist regime aggression against Iran, the U.S. military command stationed in Bahrain became the main center for directing military operations. The Al-Jufair naval base, the site of the Fifth Fleet and U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, was targeted by Iran, and the Isa Air Base in the Sakheer area was also on the list of targets.
The February 14 Coalition emphasized that U.S. bases in Bahrain have played a key role in directing military and intelligence operations, and Iran has announced that a number of attacks against this country were carried out from these bases; including the attack that, according to the statement, led to the massacre at the Minab girls' school. The coalition also stated that the presence of CENTCOM in Bahrain makes this country a partner in all U.S. operations in West Asia.
The statement continued that these bases have been responsible for directing operations related to controlling the Persian Gulf waterways, the blockade of Iranian ports, the Arabian Sea, and the Strait of Hormuz, and Bahrain has become an advanced platform for carrying out naval and aerial operations against Iran.
The February 14 Coalition, referring to the consequences of Iran's response, announced that U.S. bases have exposed Bahrain to the most dangerous security threat in recent decades, to the extent that during recent confrontations, the country was placed at the top of Iran's target bank, and bases, warehouses, and U.S. interests were targeted by Iranian missiles and drones. According to this statement, approximately 200 ballistic missiles and more than 468 drones were used in these attacks.
In conclusion, the February 14 Coalition emphasized that the Bahraini government over the past two decades has placed the country's land and airspace at the disposal of foreign powers, providing the ground for extensive activities of U.S., British, and Zionist regime intelligence agencies; an action that, according to the coalition, has turned Bahrain into one of the largest centers of espionage and security operations in the Persian Gulf region, from which cyber wars, wiretapping operations, and covert intelligence activities, including projects carried out under the cover of Amazon, are managed.
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