MANAMA, 8 September 2003 — A Bahrain military court yesterday sentenced an officer to three years in jail for illegal possession of arms after police originally arresting him on terrorism charges, the official Bahrain News Agency (BNA) said.
It said the court also fined Isa Abdullah Balouchi 500 dinars ($1,326) and expelled him from military service after he confessed to having weapons and ammunition at home without permission — a crime under Bahraini law. The verdict can be appealed. Police had arrested Balouchi and four other Bahrainis in February for allegedly planning terror attacks in the Gulf Arab state. A court acquitted three of the five for lack of evidence. New charges of illegal possession of arms were then brought against Balouchi and his relative Jamal Balouchi, who was sentenced in July to five years jail for planning “terror acts”.
