British nationals living in Bahrain have denounced an attack on their embassy, calling it an 'act of terror.'

Betsy Bennett Mathieson, who has lived in kingdom for 31 years, said the explosion outside the British Embassy was in contrast with local culture and hospitality.

'This is an act of terror that cannot be tolerated in a civilised society. It is a shameless act aimed to break the Bahrain-British ties that have been there for centuries,' said Mathieson, who is also a member of the steering committee of the Bahrain European Expatriate Council.

'Thank God no-one was injured and the damage was minimal. I would like to say this is a poor welcome for the new British ambassador and his family.'

'Bahraini hospitality is well known and we would like to reassure the ambassador that the kingdom is tolerant and welcoming.'

British Club executive committee chairman Andrew Savage said he heard about the explosion, adding the club was not presently stepping up security for its members.

'We are vigilant and confident that things are under control. If we are advised by authorities to step up security we shall take necessary measures.

'Everything is normal at the moment and we have our security at the club to ensure safety.'

One British expat, who has lived in Bahrain for 10 years, said he couldn't understand why the British Embassy would be targeted. 'It doesn't make sense,' he said on condition of anonymity.

'I'm not aware of any actions by the British government recently in relation to Bahrain that would cause someone to do that.'

'I wouldn't be surprised if it turned out to be youngsters, but it still begs the question why.'

'If it was a serious attack I would expect the damage to be much worse, but after what happened in Tehran recently you can't rule out the Iranian element,' he added.-TradeArabia News Service