UK police extend arrest warrants for Iranian nationals held in terror probe
According to British reports, suspects may have been ‘hours away’ from major attack, with some outlets claiming synagogues, Jewish community may have been target
British police said Monday that they had secured warrants to further question four Iranian men arrested on suspicion of terrorism offences this weekend.
Police arrested five Iranian men aged between 29 and 46 in Saturday’s operation, four of whom were detained under the Terrorism Act, while the fifth was detained under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act.
“Warrants of further detention have today (Monday, 5 May) been secured for those four men, meaning they can be detained and questioned until Saturday, 10 May,” said the Met Police’s Counter Terrorism Command.
The fifth man detained under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act has been released on bail to a date in May, added the force.
“Our officers and staff are progressing what is a significant and highly complex investigation, and we still have searches and activity underway at multiple addresses across the country,” said Dominic Murphy, head of the Counter Terrorism Command.
“We believe that a specific premises was the target of this suspected plot and Counter Terrorism Policing officers remain in close contact with the affected premises,” he added.
In a separate operation on Saturday, police detained three other men on suspicion of terrorism offenses, two of whom were also Iranian nationals. The arrests were carried out in London, Swindon, and the Greater Manchester area.
According to British media reports, speculation is mounting that those arrested were “hours away” from carrying out an attack on a synagogue or other Jewish target. There has been no confirmation of the reports.
According to The Telegraph, “the target may have been a synagogue or another target linked to the Jewish community.” The Daily Mail said a “major attack” was planned.
The embassy of Iran in London did not respond to a request for comment on the arrests.
The arrests come at a time of heightened scrutiny of Iran-backed activities in the UK, with Britain saying it has responded to more than 20 such plots since 2022, and imposing sanctions on a Swedish-based criminal network linked to Iran for targeting Israeli and Jewish interests in Europe.
The Times of Israel Community.