DUBAI, May 24 (Xinhua) -- The United Arab Emirates (UAE) said Wednesday that it stands with Bahrain and vowed support to the Gulf states' "security measures" after scores of people were killed Tuesday, UAE state news agency WAM reported.
The UAE ministry said in a statement "the security and stability of sisterly Bahrain is an integral part of the security and stability of the UAE and the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC)."
Founded in 1981, GCC is a political and economic union of the six Gulf Arab states including Bahrain and the UAE.
The statement said the UAE rejected any "pockets" supporting "chaos and terrorism in Bahrain which is supported externally."
Bahrain's Ministry of the Interior said on Tuesday five people were killed and eight others injured during a "security operation" in the village of Deraz, home to the Shiite cleric Issa Qasim in the north of the country.
Over 60 percent of Bahraini nationals are Shiite while the ruling family and the minority of Bahraini nationals are Sunni Muslims.
