Suicide plot aimed at PM foiled
Theresa May target of Islamic extremist plan
An Islamic extremist suicide plot to assassinate Prime Minister Theresa May has been foiled, British press reported last night, citing sources.
“It’s the latest in a number of terror plots that police and MI5 believe they’ve foiled this year,” Sky’s crime correspondent Martin Brunt reported. “I understand that the head of MI5, Andrew Parker, briefed Cabinet ministers today, such is the seriousness of what they believed they have uncovered.
“It is in essence an extreme Islamist suicide plot against Downing Street. Essentially police believe that the plan was to launch some sort of improvised explosive device at Downing Street and in the ensuing chaos attack and kill Theresa May, the Prime Minister.
“This is something which has been pursued over several weeks at least by Scotland Yard, MI5 and West Midlands Police,” Brunt said. “It came to a head last week with the arrest of two men, by armed police, who were charged with preparing acts of terrorism.”
The Guardian newspaper reported that two men were detained Nov. 28 in an operation involving MI5 investigators and counterterrorism police officers from Scotland Yard and the West Midlands.
The Guardian reported the two men are being charged “with the intention of committing acts of terrorism” and “engaging in conduct in preparation for giving effect to that intention.” The newspaper said the attack was planned to begin with an improvised bomb blast at the gates of Downing Street, the prime minister’s official residence.
Sky reported that Naa’imur Zakariyah Rahman, 20, of London and Mohammed Aqib Imran, 21, of Birmingham are expected to be brought before Westminster Magistrates’ Court to face terrorism charges today.
The media reports stated that Britain’s MI5 intelligence agency reported yesterday that it had thwarted nine terrorism plots in Britain in the past year.
A series of Islamic extremist attacks in Britain within the last year include: • Five people killed in March when a man drove a car at pedestrians on Westminster Bridge and stabbed a police officer guarding Parliament.
• A suicide bomb that killed 22 in May at a concert at Manchester Arena. The official report released yesterday found opportunities to thwart the attack had been missed.
• The attack on London Bridge in June with vehicles and knives that killed 11 people.
• An attack at London’s Finsbury Park mosque in June that left one dead.
• A failed bombing attempt on a Tube train at Parsons Green station in September.