United States designates Saraya al-Mukhtar terrorist group

The US State Department, headed by Mike Pompeo, issued a statement last Tuesday in which it included the Saraya al-Mukhtar group as a terrorist group. This is laid down in Executive Order 13224, as it considers that its activities undermine US foreign policy and national security.

The al-Mukhtar Brigades are a terrorist group of Shiite ideology which has been present in Bahrain since 2013. It is one of the formations supported by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, which has earned it the designation as a terrorist group by the United States.

In recent years Bahrain has witnessed growing violent activity by Shiite groups whose main target has been the Bahraini security forces, though the human cost of the attacks has been very low.

The designation as a terrorist group by the United States entails economic sanctions against its members and the pursuit and blocking of any capital they may have on US territory.

According to the statement, the designation as a terrorist organisation by the United States allows the international community "to identify a significant risk of attacks being committed by this group". 

Bahrain does not specifically include this group in its list of terrorist organisations, but does indicate that all organisations with links to Saraya al-Ashtar, another Shia group active in the Gulf country, will be considered terrorist organisations. 

This group would be part of the network of armed groups and militias with which the Iranian Revolutionary Guard maintains close contact, in addition to providing logistic and financial support. These groups would be present in Iraq, Yemen, Lebanon and Israel. Through this, Teheran seeks to extend its influence in the Middle East through Shiite movements opposed to the influence of Saudi Arabia.

Precisely, the United Kingdom is considering the possibility of directly including this Iranian Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organisation. The United States' decision is a further sign of support for the Gulf monarchies, this time from the viewpoint of the fight against terrorism.