LONDON — Nine terror suspects allegedly plotting large-scale attacks against British cities and landmarks were charged Monday and jailed until their next court appearance in January.
The men were among a dozen arrested last week in London, Cardiff and Stoke-on-Trent in central England. Three were subsequently released without being charged and five of the original 12 were of Bangladeshi origin.
The arrests, in the largest British anti-terror raid in two years, came at a time of heightened anxiety about a variety of terror plots in Europe. If the conspiracy turns out to be true, it would also be the latest in a series of major homegrown plots in Britain in the past five years.
Police have not released specific details, but security officials said the nine suspects were planning substantial attacks in Britain.
The suspects were expected to be back in court Jan. 14 on a variety of terror-related charges including conspiracy to cause explosions.
Since the 2005 suicide-bombing attacks on London’s transportation network that killed 52 commuters, there have been a number of other alleged terror plots in Britain.
In April 2009, 12 men were detained over an alleged al Qaeda bomb plot in the northern city of Manchester. All were subsequently released without charge and ordered to leave Britain. One of them, Abid Naseer, was later rearrested at the request of the United States, which says he was involved in a plot to bomb the New York City subway. He is in jail awaiting extradition.
In 2006, U.S. and British intelligence officials thwarted one of the largest plots yet, a plan to explode nearly a dozen trans-Atlantic airliners.
The nine men in the latest alleged plot are: Gurukanth Desai, 28, Omar Sharif Latif, 26, and Abdul Malik Miah, 24, from Cardiff; Mohammed Moksudur Rahman Chowdhury, 20, and Shah Mohammed Lutfar Rahman, 28, from London; and Nazam Hussain, 25, Usman Khan, 19, Mohibur Rahman, 26, and Abul Bosher Mohammed Shahjahan, 26, from Stoke-on-Trent.
The decision to charge them was announced early Monday.
“I have today advised the police that nine men should be charged with conspiracy to cause explosions and with engaging in conduct in preparation for acts of terrorism with the intention of either committing acts of terrorism or assisting another to commit such acts,” anti-terror prosecutor Sue Hemming said.
Police said the conspiracy started Oct. 1 and continued until Dec. 20, the day of the arrests.
The men are also accused of preparing for acts of terrorism, downloading and researching materials and methods for acts of terrorism, and carrying out reconnaissance missions and testing incendiary material.
Europe has been the target of numerous terror plots by Islamist militants. The deadliest was the 2004 Madrid train bombings, when shrapnel-filled bombs exploded, killing 191 people and wounding about 1,800.
In October, the U.S. warned its citizens living or traveling in Europe to be wary after details emerged of a larger European terror threat, including reports of a planned Mumbai-style shooting attack.
Britain’s terror alert has remained unchanged at “severe” while Germany upped its terror alert Nov. 17 in response to an increased threat from Islamic extremists.
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