Bahrain’s Interior Ministry revoked the citizenship of 69 people Monday and, the following day, the kingdom’s High Criminal Court sentenced five others to life in prison in back-to-back enforcement actions targeting alleged domestic supporters of Iran.
King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa issued a royal directive authorizing the revocations under Article 10/3 of Bahrain’s Nationality Law, which allows authorities to strip citizenship from individuals found to have harmed the kingdom’s interests.
All 69, including relatives of the primary accused, were designated as “non-Bahraini origin,” a classification typically applied to naturalized citizens. Officials said those targeted had “glorified or sympathized with the hostile Iranian acts, or engaged in contacts with external parties.”
🇧🇭 Bahrain revokes citizenship of 69 people over ‘sympathy’ for Iran during war, state news agency reports
📌 Move follows court proceedings over alleged promotion and glorification ‘of Iranian hostile terrorist acts’ https://t.co/Mjy1VE7FvO pic.twitter.com/VHW3Ev0l7q
— Anadolu English (@anadoluagency) April 28, 2026
In Tuesday’s ruling, two Afghan nationals and three Bahraini citizens were sentenced to life imprisonment on charges of coordinating with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to surveil sensitive sites.
في قضيتي تخابر منفصلتين..
السجن المؤبد لمتهمَيْن أفغانيَّيْن في قضية، وثلاثة مواطنين في قضية أخرى لتخابرهم مع الحرس الثوري الإيراني الإرهابي للقيام بأعمال عدائية إرهابية ضد مملكة البحرين والإضرار بمصالحها.#البحرين#النيابة_العامة
— النيابة العامة (@bppbahrain) April 28, 2026
The Public Prosecution also announced 25 additional defendants received 10-year prison terms for supporting Iranian “terrorist acts.” One defendant was acquitted.
The London-based Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy condemned the revocations. Advocacy director Sayed Ahmed Alwadaei called the action “the beginning of a dangerous era of repression” and said the decisions were imposed without legal safeguards or the right of appeal.
The Bahraini government announced the revocation of citizenship from 69 individuals, describing them as being of “non-Bahraini origin” and accusing them of “sympathy with and glorification of Iran’s hostile acts” and “collaborating with external parties,”
This marks the first… https://t.co/6vcQav1MnZ
— Sayed Ahmed AlWadaei (@SAlwadaei) April 27, 2026
Iran launched missile and drone strikes on Gulf states February 28, following U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iranian territory. Strikes near Naval Support Activity Bahrain, the home port of the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet, forced the evacuation of American personnel from the Juffair district. Tehran ceased Gulf attacks April 9 under a Pakistan-brokered ceasefire.
Bahrain severed diplomatic ties with Iran in 2016 and has accused Tehran of backing militant networks inside the kingdom.
As negotiations to end the war continue, Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani is presiding over UN Security Council sessions on Strait of Hormuz maritime security.
