Hackers claiming allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group have brought down the website of a Bahraini cultural institution.

The website of the Isa Cultural Centre (www.icc.gov.bh), in Juffair, was targeted on May 18 by a group calling itself Fareeq Fadhaeh Al Elmania (Secular Scandals Team), said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication.

It was offline yesterday (May 20) after hackers posted a message saying Bahrain was targeted because it was taking part in US-led air strikes against the IS as part of Operation Inherent Resolve.

Flags of all countries taking part were also posted, along with a picture of a hostage wearing an orange jumpsuit.

The group announced the hack on its Twitter account @A_L_T_1, saying American websites and a Kuwaiti site were also targeted.

Isa Cultural Centre chairman Dr Shaikh Khalid bin Khalifa Al Khalifa said it was not the first time its website had been targeted.

“In the past, our website was attacked by hackers affiliated to Houthis (in Yemen), and now we have groups claiming to have links with IS targeting us,” he said.

The former Shura Council member said that website security was being stepped up as a result of the attack.

“Now we are working to upgrade our security features,” he said.

The attack took place a week after an IS video was released threatening 'electronic war' against the US, Europe and Australia, claiming to have hacked sites belonging to the 'American leadership' and an Australian airport, among others.

It coincided with advances by IS fighters in Ramadi, in Iraq, as well as central Syria.

Campaign

A multi-national campaign of air strikes against IS targets in Iraq and Syria has been ongoing since last September, after the radical movement seized control of large swathes of Iraq last July.

The Iraqi Council of Ministers this week announced plans to accelerate training and equipping of local tribes, recruit from the Iraqi Army, train local police and develop a plan to retake Ramadi. - TradeArabia News Service