Kuwait says it stopped armed Iranian team from attacking one of its islands

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Kuwait accused Iran on Tuesday of sending an armed paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps team to launch a failed attack earlier this month on an island in the Middle East nation home to a China-funded port project.

Iran didn’t immediately acknowledge the allegation by Kuwait, which came under repeated attack by Iran in the war, and even during the shaky ceasefire still holding in the region. However, the allegation and ongoing attacks throughout the region have threatened to tip the region back into open warfare.

Negotiations between the US and Iran appear at a standstill for the moment, also raising the risk of the conflict breaking out again.

Kuwait said that a team of six armed members of the Guard tried to infiltrate Bubiyan Island in the northwest corner of the Persian Gulf near Iraq and Iran on May 1.

It accused the team of planning to carry out “hostile acts,” without elaborating.

Kuwait said that it detained four of the men, while two escaped when its forces disrupted their infiltration of the island. Kuwait said one of its security officials had been wounded in the attack, which initially was announced on May 3 without any details.

Kuwait identified the men held as two Guard naval captains, a Guard naval lieutenant, and a Guard army lieutenant.

Bubiyan Island is home to Mubarak Al Kabeer Port, which is under construction as part of China’s “Belt and Road” initiative. That project also came under attack during the war by Iran.

Kuwait provided no reason for why it delayed linking the attack to Iran.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry condemned the arrests, saying they were on maritime patrol and entered the Gulf country’s territorial waters due to “disruption in their navigation.”

The ministry rejected Kuwait’s statements, saying that Iran was planning “hostile actions” against the Gulf country.

Bahrain sentences two dozen over alleged Iran ties

Meanwhile, on Tuesday, prosecutors in Bahrain said at least two dozen people were handed prison sentences on Tuesday on charges including espionage and conspiring with the IRGC. They said three were sentenced to life. Others received shorter Iran-related sentences.

Bahrain — an island nation ruled by a Sunni Muslim monarchy with a Shiite-majority population — has sentenced dozens on Iran-related charges since the start of the war. Prosecutors and the Interior Ministry have alleged that Iran maintains cells that carry out espionage and help identify targets there. Rights groups say the island nation has widened a crackdown on dissidents during the war, as well as on Shiites.

Reuters and Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.