What on earth is going on at Huffington Post? Hot on the heels ofTom Squitieri's articles presenting a sympathetic view of Bahrain's repressive regime (September 21, October 2 and 
October 5), we now have Rob Sobhani scaremongering about Iranian designs on Bahrain.

"The end result of hesitation in extending our [America's] unequivocal support to and friendship towards Bahrain at this hour may very well be an Islamic Republic of Bahrain allied with Tehran's ayatollahs," he writes. 

Sobhani goes on to inform HuffPo readers: "I have met King Hamad on a number of occasions. He is a thoughtful and progressive leader who understands the challenges facing his country" – adding that the US "should ensure that Bahrain remains stable, prosperous and free of Iranian domination".

Sobhani is a former Georgetown University professor who has made two failed attempts to run for the US Senate. He is the author of two books, one of them a "detailed tribute" to the king of Saudi Arabia, the other about Iranian-Israeli relations. 

He is a member of the US hawks' advocacy group, the Committee on the Present Danger, and has also been involved with the neoconservative Coalition for Democracy in Iran.

He is currently chief executive of a company called Caspian Group Holdings which specialises in "negotiating projects for government and multinational clients with business interests in the Middle East and former Soviet Union". As part of this work, according to its website, it engages in country risk analysis, public relations and lobbying the US government.

Posted by Brian Whitaker, 23 October 2011.