Two Iranian citizens charged in Britain over planned attack on Jewish community

London/Manchester. Two Iranian citizens in Britain are accused of plotting attacks on the Jewish community in the Manchester area. Among other things, they are said to have obtained information and components for building explosive devices and researched potential attack targets on the Internet, the Metropolitan Police said on Friday evening. The two men, aged 36 and 34, were arrested in Manchester on September 20th, it said.

According to the information, the defendants were in contact with another man abroad in connection with the planned crime. The contact person may be in Iran, it said.

The two men, who live in Liverpool and Salford in northern England, were remanded in custody and are due to appear in court in London today.

Yom Kippur, the highest Jewish holiday, began this year on the day of her arrest. Senior National Counter-Terrorism Coordinator Vicki Evans said she was aware that news of the suspected attack plots had caused “great concern” at this time.

Evans also recalled the attack on the Heaton Park synagogue in Manchester, which celebrated its first anniversary on Friday. The attack by a suspected Islamist attacker caused horror in Great Britain and sparked a debate about the growing risk of anti-Semitic violence.

Referring to the incident near Fairford Air Base, Evans said: “This week also brought some of the wider threats posed by Iran to the UK into sharp focus.” However, the cases are “in no way connected to each other,” she emphasized.

On Sunday night, five men were arrested near the British military base RAF Fairford, which is used by the US Air Force. They have now been released under strict conditions and are suspected of preparing a terrorist act. Investigations are also underway on suspicion of violations of the Explosives Act. Prime Minister Andy Burnham spoke on Wednesday of a possible connection to Iran.