Bahrain’s High Criminal Court postponed until March 8, the trial of three people accused of conspiring with Qatar, in order to hear the pleading of the Public Prosecution Office. The court’s decision came after a public hearing on Thursday, in the presence of Ali Salman Ahmed, secretary-general of the dissolved Al-Wefaq Society, the first defendant in the case. The Public Prosecution referred the accused to trial on charges of communicating with a foreign country with the aim of committing hostile acts against Bahrain and harming the country’s political and economic status and its national interests in an attempt to overthrow the regime. The charges also include revealing defense confidential information to a foreign country, accepting payments from a foreign country for providing military secrets and information related to the country’s internal affairs, and broadcasting false news and rumors abroad that would undermine Bahrain’s financial confidence and reputation. Ali Salman is the only defendant presently detained, while Ali Mahdi al-Aswad and Ali Jomaa Al-Sultan are being tried in absentia on charges of communicating with a foreign country (Qatar) to commit terrorist acts that undermine Bahrain’s interests, security and stability. The trial of the three man began on November 16, 2017, after the Bahraini security services revealed on August 16 that a conversation had taken place between Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jabr Al Thani and Ali Salman during the events that took place in Bahrain from February 14 to March 16, 2011. On August 7, 2017, the security services also uncovered Qatari conspiracies to finance terrorist acts in Bahrain through the transfer of funds from the Qatari side to Al Wifaq member Hassan Isa. The security services confirmed that the funds were used in the terrorist bombing that killed two persons and left eight others wounded in the operation in Sitra in July 2015. Ali Salman is currently serving a prison sentence. He was sentenced to four years in jail after being convicted of “crimes of promoting change in the political system by force, threats and illegal means, and publicly inciting hatred against a certain faction of people.”