VZCZCXRO0619
OO RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHDIR RUEHKUK
DE RUEHMK #0650/01 1931313
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 121313Z JUL 07
FM AMEMBASSY MANAMA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7012
INFO RUCNIRA/IRAN COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHMFISS/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RHBVAKS/COMUSNAVCENT  PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MANAMA 000650 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/12/2017 
TAGS: PREL BA IR REGION
SUBJECT: BAHRAIN REACTS ANGRILY TO IRANIAN TERRITORIAL 
CLAIM ON BAHRAIN 
 
 
Classified By: Ambassador William T. Monroe.  Reasons: 1.4 (B)(D) 
 
¶1. (C) Summary. A statement by a Khamenei associate 
reasserting a claim that Bahrain is a province of Iran has 
generated a spate of angry denunciations in Bahrain.  The 
statement said that Bahrain had been separated from Iran by 
an illegal agreement between the Shah and the US/UK 
governments.  This is reportedly the first time since 
independence that a senior Iranian has made such a 
territorial claim on Bahrain. Amid public calls for a cutback 
in relations, the Foreign Ministry called in the Iranian 
charge d'affaires to protest, and Iran's FM is expected to 
visit Bahrain July 13 to discuss the issue.  Sunni and Shia 
leaders alike have denounced the statement, and the press has 
been full of angry front-page articles and editorials.  The 
statement hit a particularly senstive spot for Bahrain's 
Sunnis, and  highlights local jitteriness at a time of 
heightened sectarian tensions in the region.  At the same 
time, the government probably does not mind having the 
opportunity to drive home the point that its concerns about 
Iran (and implicitly Shia) are grounded in reality.  End 
summary. 
 
¶2. (U) A recent statement by the editor of the Iranian daily 
Kayhan, Hussain Shariatmadari, alleging that Bahrain is the 
14th province of Iran, has set off a firestorm in Bahrain. 
The statement, which was reprinted in the Kuwaiti newspaper 
Al-Qabas, hit the news here on July 10, generating a spate of 
angry denunciations and front-page editorials.  It also led 
to the summoning of the Iranian Charge d'Affaires to the 
Foreign Ministry for separate protests by Minister of Foreign 
Affairs Shaikh Khalid and Minister of State Nazar Baharna (a 
Shia). 
 
¶3. (U) In his statement, Shariatmadari, who is reportedly an 
advisor to Iranian supreme leader Khamenei, said that 
"Bahrain is a special case among GCC countries in the Persian 
Gulf because Bahrain is part of the Iranian territories and 
had been separated from Iran in light of an illegal 
settlement between the executed Shah an the governments of 
the United States and Britain.  And the main demand for the 
Bahrain people is to return its province -- which was 
separated from Iran -- to the motherland which is Islamic 
Iran.  It is self-evident that Iran and the people of this 
separated province must not give up this ultimate right."  He 
also reaffirmed Iranian sovereignty over the three UAE 
islands.  Finally, addressing the ruling families of the Gulf 
countries, he said: "Since they know that the earthquake 
caused by the Islamic revolution model will lead to the 
collapse of their illegitimate regimes ..., they become 
enemies of Islamic Iran...." 
 
¶4. (U) On July 11, FM Shaikh Khalid told the press that 
Bahrain was waiting for an official response from the Iranian 
government.  Asked if Bahrain was considering withdrawing its 
Ambassador from Iran, Shaikh Khalid stated that "at this time 
Bahrain prefers a diplomatic solution rather than escalating 
the issue."  (Note: Ironically, Bahrain's new Ambassador to 
Iran Rashid Al-Dossary presented his credentials in Tehran 
July 10, at which time -- according to Iranian press reports 
-- President Ahmadinejad emphasized the positive role that 
friendly ties between the two countries could play.) 
Meanwhile, Iran's CDA in Bahrain Redha Henroor (the former 
Ambassador left several months ago and has not yet been 
replaced) told the press that Iranian Foreign Minister 
Muttaqi would stop over in Bahrain Friday to meet with FM 
Shaikh Khalid and to discuss the issue. 
 
¶5. (C) Privately, Bahraini officials have been harsh in their 
condemnation of the Iranian statement.  MFA MinState Baharna 
called the statement "outrageous," and said the Iranian CDA 
had little to say in response when called in.  Minister of 
Industry and Commerce Hassan Fakhro noted that this was the 
first time since independence that a senior Iranian had made 
such a statement about Bahrain.  Minister of Defense Shaikh 
Khalifa said that it simply reaffirmed what they know about 
Iran, and its supporters in Bahrain. 
 
¶6. (U) Sunni and Shia political leaders alike have reacted 
strongly to the statement.  Leading Shia political society 
Al-Wafaq issued a statement stating that the article was "far 
from the truth, unrealistic, and surprising to everybody. 
Bahrain is historically Arab.  This was emphasized in the 
1971 referendum, through which the Bahraini people chose to 
be an independent Arab Muslim state.  Such statements do not 
serve stability in the region and harm all the region's 
countries."  The head of the Council of Representatives 
Foreign Affairs Committee Adel Moawada (a Salafi) said that 
the statement could not be considered that of an individual 
because Shariatmadari represented a big segment of society. 
 
MANAMA 00000650  002 OF 002 
 
 
He announced that his committee would meet July 12 with FM 
Shaikh Khalid to discuss the issue.  Head of Al-Mustaqbil 
bloc Adel Al-Asoomi demanded that Bahrain expel the Iranian 
Ambassador, pull out the Bahrain Ambassador from Tehran, and 
have limited ties with Iran "as long as it has greed towards 
Bahrain and the region."  The Shura Council issued a 
statement condemning Shariatmadari's "irresponsible 
statement." 
 
¶7. (SBU) Mansour Al-Jamry, the editor of Bahrain's one 
Shia-oriented newspaper (Al-Wasat), came under considerable 
local criticism when his newspaper did not cover the story on 
the day it broke (the only daily that didn't).  In his July 
12 commentary, he tried to justify his decision, saying that 
he thought Shariatmadari's the comments were "too ridiculous" 
to merit coverage and that he preferred to focus on he 
positive comments of Ahmadinejad during the presentation of 
credentials of Bahrain's new Ambassador. The issue was 
Al-Wasat's lead story on July 12 
 
¶8. (SBU) Otherwise, editorial commentary was consistently 
harsh.  Al-Ayam demanded that Iran clarify its position, 
finding it strange that it "has not issued a clarification 
about these unacceptable statements."  Al-Watan warned of 
continued Iranian attempts to gain control over Bahrain. 
Al-Waqt affirmed that Bahraini Shia and Sunni are not willing 
to give up their land and their sovereignty. In an apparent 
dig at Mansour Al-Jamry, columnist Sawsan Al-Shaer wondered 
"how blood does not boil in the veins of any Bahraini about 
these statements."   Akhbar Al-Khaleej columnist (and Shura 
Council member) Sameera Rajab predictably argued that 
Shariatmadari's statement "proves Iran's historical plans and 
greed in the region and Bahrain." 
 
¶9. (C) Comment: This tempest will surely pass, but the 
Shariatmadari has hit a particularly sensitive spot for Sunni 
Bahrainis. It highlights a certain jitteriness in Bahrain 
about Iran and its intentions in the context of heightened 
sectarian tensions generated by the war in Iraq, Hizbolah 
activity in Lebanon, and Ahmadinejad's aggressive presidency. 
 At the same time, while the concern and protestations are 
genuine, the government probably does not mind having the 
opportunity to drive home the point that its concerns about 
Iran (and implicitly Shia) are grounded in reality. 
 
********************************************* ******** 
Visit Embassy Manama's Classified Website: 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/manama/ 
********************************************* ******** 
MONROE