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Bahrain said it would send an ambassador back to Lebanon, after a break of some 19 months. Manama had withdrawn its envoy in October 2021, in response to comments by Lebanese information minister George Kordahi in which he was highly critical of the Saudi-led war in Yemen.

The Bahraini government has rowed back on changes to its school curriculum involving Jews and Israel, after criticism from local preachers, Shura Council members and others. While heavily promoted by the government, Bahrain’s normalisation deal with Israel remains deeply controversial among the population. 

Manama has agreed to establish diplomatic relations with two Pacific Island countries, Samoa and Nauru, in late April and May.

National security advisor, Supreme Defence Council secretary-general and Royal Guard commander Sheikh Nasser Bin Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa was promoted from major general to the rank of lieutenant general in an order by his father King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa on 30 April.

Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani travelled to London to attend the coronation ceremony of King Charles III on 6 May. Also to attend the service was Bahrain’s King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa, Kuwait's Crown Prince Sheikh Mishaal Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, and Oman's culture, sports and youth minister Sayyid Theyazin Bin Haitham Al-Said. It was not clear who would attend from the UAE or Saudi Arabia.

Bahrain and Qatar said they would resume full diplomatic relations, following a meeting of senior officials at the headquarters of the GCC General Secretariat in Riyadh.

Manama is offering a 'golden licence' to companies that invest in large projects and create hundreds of jobs for locals, in the latest sign of increasingly stiff competition among Gulf economies for international capital

Supreme Council for Health chairman Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdullah Al-Khalifa was named chairman of the Bahrain Red Crescent Society (BRCS). He is only the third person to take on the role since the BRCS was set up in 1970.

Sheikh Abdulla Bin Khalifa Al-Khalifa is to take over as chief executive of Bahrain's sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat from 1 May, replacing Khalid Al-Rumaihi who has been in the post since September 2019.

The Royal Bahraini Air Force (RBAF) took delivery of the first of its Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 fighter jets in March, becoming the first in the Gulf to add the aircraft to its fleet.

The United States Naval Forces Central Command (Navcent) held the 18-day International Maritime Exercise 23 (IMX23) in late February and early March, with an opening ceremony for the operational phase held at US 5th Fleet’s headquarters in Bahrain.

Bahraini officials issued an apology to the Cyprus House of Representatives’ speaker Annita Demetriou, after she complained that the flag of the breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) had been displayed alongside other national flags at the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly, held in Manama.

Bahrain's Royal Endurance Team captain Sheikh Nasser Bin Hamad Al-Khalifa was presented with the Order of Ahmad Al-Fateh at an event in Manama, held to mark his recent win in the 160km race of the FEI Endurance World Championships in the UAE.

Qatar rapprochement: Efforts to rebuild relations between Manama and Doha are continuing, following a series of contacts between leading figures from both countries in January and February, including a phone call between Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani and Bahrain’s Prime Minister and Crown Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al-Khalifa in late January and a meeting between their foreign ministers in Riyadh in early February

A concerted effort to put relations between Bahrain and Qatar on a more normal footing is under way, signalled by a meeting between their foreign ministers at the Gulf Co-operation Council headquarters in Riyadh in February.