Three men charged with plotting Iran-backed terror attacks on the UK, Digi Mart USA News (United Kingdom): Three men have been charged in the United States with allegedly conspiring to use a UK-based network to orchestrate an attack on RAF Fairford, the British military base that houses American service members.
Allegedly Iranian-backed operators, the trio are accused of coordinating a series of terrorist attacks in the UK on behalf of an Iran-aligned terrorist network, according to the US Department of Justice. US Attorney Jamie McDonald for the Southern District of New York said the defendants “helped orchestrate a campaign of terror on behalf of terrorist organizations affiliated with Iran that targeted Jewish communities in Europe and the United States, and the British military base, RAF Fairford, housing American service members.”
Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, a dual Iranian-Iraqi national, Mohsen Mohajeri, an Iranian national, and Mohammad Ali al-Hassani, an Iraqi national, are facing an eight-count indictment at a New York court. The indictment and other court filings allege that the trio conspired to commit nearly 20 terrorist attacks and attempted attacks in Europe and the United States on behalf of an Iran-aligned terrorist network.
That network allegedly has links to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Lebanese-backed militant group Hezbollah, both designated foreign terrorist organisations in the US. One of the alleged attempted attacks is a foiled plot at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire on 27 September.
Five British men were arrested with suspected explosives near the base, which until recently housed the US air force. A sixth British-Iranian man was arrested several days later, and all were released on bail.
At the time, Laurence Taylor, head of National Counter Terrorism Policing, said one line of enquiry is whether individuals may have been working unknowingly on behalf of a foreign state. He acknowledged speculation about possible links to the Iranian state and said the force was keeping “an open mind in this investigation.”
In June, al-Saadi pleaded not guilty to charges that he plotted at least 18 attacks in retaliation for the US and Israel’s war with Iran. He has been held without bail since.
Al-Hassani and Mohajeri, both of whom were in Iran at the time of the alleged RAF Fairford plot, allegedly relied on a network of contacts in the United Kingdom. Al-Saadi, who was already imprisoned pending terrorism charges, allegedly tried to coordinate with the other two men by passing coded messages through third parties.
The three allegedly orchestrated a campaign of 18 terrorist attacks in Europe in the spring of 2026, including seven in the UK. Attacks allegedly included arsons, explosives and, in one instance, a stabbing in London of two Jewish men.
This is a breaking news story which will be updated.
