Bahrain, ruled by a Sunni dynasty, has long been wary of Iranian support for its Shiite majority

Bahrain has revoked the citizenship of 69 people for “expressing sympathy” with Iranian retaliatory strikes on the Gulf state, the Interior Ministry has announced. The monarchy, ruled by a Sunni dynasty, has for years been wary of potential Iranian influence on the Shiite majority.

In a statement on Monday, the ministry said the revocation applied to those who “glorified Iran’s sinful, hostile acts” as well as their families by dependency. It described all 69 people as being of “non-Bahraini origin,” adding that the authorities were “continuing to study and review” who deserves citizenship.

The move, the ministry added, was carried out under royal directives from King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and based on a national law article allowing citizenship to be withdrawn from anyone deemed to have caused “harm to the interests of the Kingdom or acting in a manner that contradicts the duty of loyalty to it.”

Sayed…