The Emirati authorities announced on Monday the arrest of members of a group that they said had been operating covertly inside the country. The individuals were accused of planning acts described as “terrorist” and “sabotage-related,” and of seeking to undermine national unity and destabilize the country, according to a statement issued by the State Security Service.
The agency said that preliminary investigations indicate the existence of an ideological and organizational connection between members of the group and the concept of “Wilayat al-Faqih” in Iran, in addition to their adoption of extremist ideas. It added that the suspects, according to the statement, participated in recruitment and mobilization operations through secret meetings and in coordination with external parties, in an attempt to reach sensitive positions within the state.
The State Security Service published a video clip that included footage from the arrest operation and the names of the accused, accompanied by the hashtag “#The_Secret_Shia_Terrorist_Organization.”
This announcement comes weeks after another Emirati statement declaring the dismantling of a network that authorities said was funded and operated by Hezbollah and Iran, with its members arrested on March 20.
The succession of these announcements reflects an escalation in official discourse regarding networks that Gulf states say are linked to external actors, in the context of ongoing regional tensions since the outbreak of war between the United States and Israel on one side, and Iran on the other, in late February.
Since then, the UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar have, in separate official statements, announced the arrest or dismantling of cells they said were linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or Hezbollah. These announcements have continued during the current truce period between the United States and Iran, which is expected to end on April 22.
In Kuwait, the Ministry of Interior announced a week ago the arrest of 24 individuals it said were involved in a scheme to finance “terrorist entities and organizations,” stating that their activities were linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The ministry added that the operation uncovered an organized effort that included collecting funds under religious pretexts and holding them in preparation for transfer based on “external instructions.” It also said that cash amounts were seized from those arrested, and that eight wanted individuals were identified outside the country, including one whose citizenship had been revoked, in addition to five of those arrested being former members of the Kuwaiti National Assembly.
In an assessment of these developments, Emirati writer and political and security analyst Ismail Al-Mansouri pointed out that the simultaneous exposure of these cells in more than one Gulf country reflects a level of security coordination and intelligence-sharing among the relevant agencies. He also explained that information obtained from investigations with those arrested contributes to enhancing early detection capabilities.
Al-Mansouri added that the description of some of these cells as having remained for long periods within civilian and commercial frameworks before becoming active with the outbreak of the war indicates a shift in the nature of their role—from a state of dormancy to a phase involving planning, coordination, and the identification of vital locations—which may reflect a transition to a more advanced level of preparation.
The article is a translation of the original Arabic.
Sakina Abdallah
A Saudi writer, researcher, and TV presenter
