Bahrain’s parliament has expelled three lawmakers who opposed a royal decree on citizenship cases, after dozens were stripped of nationality for allegedly backing Iran during the Middle East war, AFP reports.

The Council of Representatives has voted unanimously to expel Abdulnabi Salman, Mamdouh al-Saleh and Mahdi al-Showaikh, who were not present for the vote, according to video footage of the session.

The kingdom was hard-hit by Iranian attacks in March. Last month, the kingdom stripped 69 people of citizenship for expressing support for Tehran.

The three lawmakers refused to vote for a royal decree abolishing the right of appeal against government decisions on nationality.

King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa had earlier lashed out at “some members of the legislative authority who sided with traitors”, the official Bahrain News Agency says, without naming them.

Their options were “either to issue a clear apology to the people of Bahrain that restores trust, or to join those they chose to align with, who have left the country or been expelled”, the king is quoted as having said.