Iraq's charge d'affaires Abdullah Jaburi was called to the foreign ministry and informed of the order against Nazem Jawad to leave, the state-run Bahrain News Agency said, quoting a ministry spokesman.

The first secretary was "in contact with an Iraqi citizen, Abdul Amir Hasnun who is implicated in the explosion on March 24 and has carried out activities which are incompatible with his diplomatic work," the spokesman said.

A gas bottle left in a dustbin exploded near the Al-Jufair base which serves as headquarters for the US Navy's Fifth Fleet.

No one was reported hurt but residents said windows nearby were shattered.

The explosion was just 250 metres (yards) from the naval base, east of the capital Manama.

Washington, waging war on the Baghdad regime, has called for Iraqi diplomats to be kicked out around the world and many nations have obliged, but Bahrain was the first to take action in the Gulf.

Most of the 5,000 Americans residing in Bahrain are military personnel with the Fifth Fleet. Some 3,000 military personnel and dependents live in Al-Jufair.

Bahrainis have repeatedly held anti-war protests and clashed with police outside the US embassy in Manama since the United States launched its military campaign against Iraq on Thursday. The embassy has since been closed.

US military personnel have been stationed here since Manama signed an agreement with Washington in the early 1970s granting the US Navy facilities at the base.

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