DUBAI: A Bahraini court on Thursday sentenced 24 people for belonging to a cell of the militant Islamic State group, stripping 13 of them of their citizenship, the prosecution said.

One member was jailed for life after being convicted of forming a branch of the militant group and recruiting others, while the rest were each sentenced to 15 years in jail.

Only eight defendants are held by authorities while 16 others remain at large.

The cell ringleader was accused of recruiting two others into IS, and helping one of them travel to Syria to receive military training from the militants, public prosecutor Ahmed al-Hammadi said.

Published in Dawn, June 24th, 2016