Secretary General Abdulrahman Al Attiya yesterday strongly condemned claims in an Iran daily that Bahrain is part of Iran. It said the three UAE islands occupied by it also belong to Iran. Such statements targeted the sovereignty of GCC states, he said. "These hostile claims were false and were aimed at fuelling sectarianism. They do not have any credibility but are intended to create chaos," he said.

There was a need to build bridges of trust for the security, stability and prosperity of the region and its people, he added.

And Bahrain's community was up in arms yesterday over the statements by Hussain Shariatmadari, adviser to the Iranian supreme leader.

Shariatmadari, who is also managing editor of Iranian daily Kayhan, claimed that the main demand of Bahrainis is the return of the "province" of Bahrain to its motherland.

The Shura Council yesterday strongly deplored the statements, calling on Iran to respect the principles of good neighbourhood and friendly ties bonding the countries and their peoples. It also urged Iran to clarify its stance vis-vis the statements in respect for international conventions and resolutions.

Parliament's financial and economic committee member Latifa Al Qaoud strongly rejected the claims, affirming that Bahrain was an Arab and Islamic country and that the Iranian official should return to history to understand that Bahrain had belonged to the Islamic and Arab world since the earliest times.

Shura council member Ali Al Asfoor criticised the statements and considered them "so silly the people of Bahrain rejected them".

He said that Bahrainis from all walks of life and religious beliefs disapproved of the statements that questioned the independence and sovereignty of the kingdom.

The people of Bahrain have expressed their opinion on this matter through the UN referendum in 1970 in which they voiced their desire to be a sovereign and independent Arab state, he said.

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Manama, Bahrain.

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