Asylum seeker attempted to incite German terrorists to launch attack

AN IRANIAN asylum seeker tried to incite a German terror cell to carry out a mass attack by driving into a crowd and then hacking down the survivors with a meat cleaver, a court has heard.

Fatah Abdullah, from Newcastle upon Tyne, also stockpiled bomb-making equipment to help arm his co-conspirators.

When police raided his flat in the Arthur’s Hill area of the city in December 2018 they discovered propaganda videos showing children beheading prisoners and animations of lorries exploding at well known British landmarks.

The 35-year-old Islamic Stateinspired fanatic used the encrypted Telegram message service to encourage German based terrorists, Omar Babek and Ahmed Hussein to carry out a bomb, vehicle and knife attack.

In one message, he wrote: “After you have set off the explosions, you target a crowd or group of people with your car, you drive through them.

“Find a meat cleaver which is used by butchers, once you have run them over with the car, get out of the car and start attacking them with it.

“The most important thing is that you carry out the jihad.”

In order to help facilitate the plot he bought 8,000 matches, explosive precursors, fireworks, fuses and a remote control detonator, the Old Bailey heard.

The attack was foiled in January last year when Hussein and Babek were arrested in the northern German state of Schleswig-holstein.

Abdullah, who had come to Britain in 2005 from Iran, had been arrested by British police the month before. His original asylum claim had been rejected and in 2007 he was sectioned after becoming mentally ill. His asylum was finally approved in 2010.

Following his arrest, Abdullah attempted to explain away the bombmaking equipment in his flat, claiming the large quantity of sulphur was for growing flowers and an SAS balaclava was to wear when it was cold.

He also told police a pocket knife he had bought on Amazon was to cut grass for his rabbits and a food mixer was to make pizza dough.

In March, Abdullah pleaded guilty to inciting terrorism overseas and engaging in conduct in preparation to assist others to commit terrorist acts.

Barnaby Jameson QC, prosecuting, said: “Mohammed Abdullah incited a terror cell, based in Germany, to commit terrorist atrocities that would have caused mass fatalities.

“His encouragement was not limited to words. He researched, obtained and tested explosives in order to teach the German cell to carry out the terrorist attacks to maximum effect.”

Hussein and Babek pleaded guilty to the preparation of a serious act of violent subversion involving unlawful handling of explosive substances and were sentenced to four years and eight months in prison.

Abdullah is expected to be sentenced at the Old Bailey on Friday.

‘After you have set off the explosions, you target a crowd or group of people with your car’