Bahrain is ready to commit ground troops to Syria as part of a U.-S.-led coalition against Islamic State, the Gulf island state said on Friday, a day after its larger neighbour and close ally Saudi Arabia announced a similar pledge, Reuters reports.
Bahraini ambassador to Britain Sheikh Fawaz bin Mohammed al-Khalifa said in a statement that Bahrain would commit troops to operate "in concert with the Saudis" under what he called the international coalition against terrorism. He added that the United Arab Emirates was also ready to commit troops.
The Bahraini ambassador said the Saudi initiative in Syria was meant to combat both Islamic State and "the brutal Assad regime", a reference to President Bashar al-Assad, a bitter foe of Saudi Arabia.