RAF Fairford: US charges three men in terror plot case
U.S. authorities charged three men over an alleged campaign targeting Jewish communities in Europe and the United States, as well as RAF Fairford in England. Prosecutors say the plot involved nearly 20 attacks and an Iran-aligned network. Only one defendant is in custody.
U.S. authorities charged three men over an alleged terror campaign targeting Jewish communities in Europe and the United States, and RAF Fairford in England, in an indictment unsealed in Manhattan federal court. Prosecutors say the alleged plots involved nearly 20 attacks, including an attempted assault on the British military base.
The charges name Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, a dual Iranian-Iraqi national; Mohsen Mohajeri, an Iranian national; and Mohammad Ali al-Hassani, an Iraqi national. Only al-Saadi is in custody.
U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald said the men acted on behalf of organizations affiliated with Iran. “These defendants helped orchestrate a campaign of terror on behalf of terrorist organisations affiliated with Iran that targeted Jewish communities in Europe and the United States, and the British military base, RAF Fairford, housing American service members,” McDonald said.
The indictment alleges the men used contacts in Britain to plan attacks for an Iran-aligned network that included the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Kata'ib Hizballah. The U.S. government has designated both groups as foreign terrorist organizations.
Prosecutors say al-Saadi used coded messages to relatives from jail to arrange payments to people who could carry out attacks. McDonald said al-Saadi continued coordinating with his co-defendants in the days before an attempted plot at RAF Fairford in September.
Attorney General Todd Blanche said: “Anyone who plans a terrorist plot on a military base housing American service members will be prosecuted by the United States government.”
British authorities detained five men after midnight on September 27, following reports of three suspicious vans traveling toward the base. A sixth suspect, a British-Iranian dual national, was arrested several days later. British authorities linked the incident to Tehran, while Iran denied involvement.
The arrests prompted the United States to withdraw bombers stationed at RAF Fairford and redeploy them to their home bases in the United States. The base, 160 kilometers west of London, has hosted American bombers during conflicts in the Middle East.
Al-Saadi was arrested in the spring and pleaded not guilty in June to charges of plotting at least 18 attacks in Europe in retaliation for the U.S. and Israel’s war with Iran. He described himself as a “prisoner of war” and has been held without bail.
Separately, British prosecutors charged Mohmed Abdulkarim and Nouman Essghir, both 24, under the National Security Act. Abdulkarim is accused of assisting a foreign intelligence service, while Essghir faces a charge of entering a prohibited place for a purpose prejudicial to the United Kingdom.
