HM King chairs Cabinet session

Manama, Oct. 30 (BNA): His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa chaired the regular weekly Cabinet Session, at Gudaibiya Palace today. HM the King stressed that defeating and eliminating terrorism are a priority, adding that the Kingdom of Bahrain will remain an oasis of security and stability, and will confront every cowardly action aimed at destabilising its security and undermining its stability with firmness and force, a post-session statement by the Cabinet Secretary-General, Dr. Yasser bin Isa Al-Nasser, said. HM King Hamad praised the kingdom’s openness to tourists and visitors and gave directives to the competent authorities to take measures that would prevent the misuse of the kingdom’s openness to harm its security and stability. Measures include tightening entry and residence procedures in light of the current security requirements, including the imposition of visas in order to preserve the security and safety of the country, HM the King said. Visas should be imposed on visitors from Qatar, from which the Kingdom of Bahrain has been the most affected by its policies that are clear to everyone, the King said, stressing that the tight security procedures will not be applied to visitors from other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries - Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. On the Executive-Legislature relations, HM King Hamad lauded cooperation between the two branches, affirming that their collaboration has yielded fruitful results in terms of gains and achievements that benefit the nation and serve the citizens. HM the King urged more cooperation between the Executive and Legislature to optimise gains, boost the democratic process and support development and nation-building efforts. HM King Hamad addressed regional and global issues and the challenges facing the region and its stability, including interference in its affairs. In this regard, HM the King stressed keenness to ensure that the progress of the GCC remains strong and cohesive, noting that time has come to take firmer actions against those who resort to foreigners to threaten brotherly countries and put their safety at risk. HM King Hamad asserted that positive meetings and summits cannot be held in the presence of those seeking no good for the alliance and trying to impede its blessed progress. Qatar has proved that it does not respect the charters, treaties and bonds on which the GCC was founded, and implemented policies that targeted the security of GCC member states. "As long as Qatar continues this approach, the Kingdom of Bahrain will not participate in any GCC Summit or meeting attended by Qatar unless it rectifies its approach, comes to its senses and responds to the demands of the countries that suffered so much from its polices," HM the King said, giving directives to take the necessary measures that the current phase requires. The regular Cabinet session later continued under the chairmanship of Deputy Premier, HH Shaikh Mohammed bin Mubarak Al Khalifa. The session strongly condemned the terrorist crime that targeted a police bus on Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman highway towards Manama near Jidhafs, resulting in the death of a policeman and the injury of several others. The Cabinet extended deepest condolences to the relatives of the late policeman and wished the wounded speedy recovery. The session stressed that the government will track down the terrorists, confront their cowardly acts firmly and forcefully and bring them to justice. The Cabinet lauded the huge sacrifices made by the brave security personnel and praised the tremendous efforts they are exerting for the sake of maintaining the kingdom’s security and stability.