Two men convicted of plotting gun attack on mass gathering of Jews
Two men were convicted of planning an Islamic State-inspired attack on a mass Jewish gathering in the Manchester area.
The court heard Walid Saadaoui, 38, and Amar Hussein, 52, had an “inherent dislike” of Jews and wanted to cause “untold harm”.
However, the plot was foiled because they unknowingly revealed their plans to an undercover agent (UCO).
Saadaoui, the main instigator of the incident, intended to smuggle four AK-47 assault rifles, two handguns and 900 rounds of ammunition into the UK in what police chiefs say could be the deadliest terrorist incident in the UK.
Months earlier, the father of two, originally from Tunisia, paid a deposit for the weapons and believed he had arranged their import with a like-minded extremist; but this person was actually UCO, referred to as Faruk in court.
Saadaoui told Farouk that he could buy firearms independently through Sweden and stated that he wanted to bring weapons from eastern Europe. He had separately purchased an air gun and visited a shooting range.
Saadaoui was arrested in the car park of a hotel in Bolton to collect some disabled firearms, while counter-terrorism police intervened on a “strike day” on May 8 last year, involving more than 200 officers.
Preston Crown Court heard he tapped hero-worshipping Islamic State terrorist Abdelhamid Abaaoud, who carried out terror attacks in Paris in 2015 that left 130 people dead and hundreds injured in citywide shootings.
No specific target area or date was identified, but prosecutors said the defendants planned to carry out a gun attack on an antisemitism march and then travel to north Manchester to kill more Jews.
Saadaoui came to the attention of authorities when he used 10 Facebook accounts, none of them in his name, to spread Islamic extremist views, which Farouk was assigned to gain his trust online and later in person.
Using one of his fake accounts, he joined the Greater Manchester Jewish Council of Deputies Facebook group, which contained details of a “March Against Antisemitism” held in the city center on January 21 last year, which was attended by thousands of people.
Days later he told Farouk: “We have the largest Jewish community here in Manchester.
“Hopefully we will humiliate and humiliate them (in the worst way) and hit them where it hurts.”
To help with his plans, Saadaoui recruited ISIS sympathizer Hussein, a Kuwaiti national who worked and lived in a furniture store in Bolton, Manchester.
The pair traveled to Dover, Kent, in March 2024 to conduct hostile reconnaissance on how a weapon could be smuggled out of the harbor undetected.
On his return, Saadaoui traveled to Prestwich and Higher Broughton in north Manchester, where he carried out similar surveillance of Jewish nurseries, schools, synagogues and shops.
A safehouse for the storage of weapons was also secured in Bolton, as both men returned to Dover two months later, believing they were monitoring firearms coming into the country.
Giving evidence, Saadaoui denied having an extremist ideology and claimed he was “playing along” with Farouk. He said that he aimed to cut the weapons with an angle grinder and then warn the authorities, his aim was to sabotage the plans before they were realized.
Hussain told detectives he was not part of any terrorist attack plan and said the evidence of the UCO was “fantasy”.
He also told them: “Your government, your prime minister, sent weapons to kill our children in Israel.
“Terror is our religion. The Quran says that terrorism is normal. We are proud, we say terrorism is pride.”
His lawyer told jurors that Hussein had “very strong views” about the conflict in Gaza, but that did not make him a terrorist.
Saadaoui, of Abram, Wigan and Hussein, of no fixed address, was found guilty of preparing to commit terrorist acts between December 2023 and May 2024.
Saadaoui’s brother Bilel, 36, of Hindley, Wigan, was found guilty of failing to disclose information about the scheme.
All three defendants will be sentenced on February 13.
Following the verdicts, Greater Manchester Police deputy chief constable Robert Potts said: “What Walid Saadaoui was trying to achieve was a terrorist attack on the Jewish community, which, given the weapons and ammunition involved, could potentially have been the deadliest terrorist attack in UK history.
“Some of the things he said made it clear that he didn’t think a less sophisticated attack with less lethal weapons was good enough because his mission was to kill as many Jewish people as possible. This wasn’t going to be accomplished by using a knife or potentially a tool as a weapon.”
“There was very real risk and danger for Faruk, who undoubtedly saved lives. I cannot emphasize enough his courage, bravery and professionalism in the role he played.”
“Inherent in our ability to continue to develop the investigation and allow Walid to proceed with his plans, working with the Crown Prosecution Service, we were satisfied we had sufficient evidence to confirm the most significant charges.”
Frank Ferguson, head of the CPS’s special crime and counter-terrorism section, said: “The investigation and prosecution employed a highly trained witness who ensured their plots were not successful and secured valuable evidence straight from the terrorists’ mouth.
“They have made clear their intent to destroy lives, their long-held attitudes and beliefs, as well as their ISIS credentials.”
