An Islamist terror cell planned to attack a British white power demonstration using a combination of homemade nail bombs, knives and sawn-off shotguns, a court heard on Thursday. The plan was only narrowly averted by the group’s own incompetence.
The Birmingham-based gang had intended to attack an English Defence League (EDL) rally in June last year, with the stash of weaponry.
“Their plan and now admitted intention was to carry out a terrorist attack using a varied selection of offensive weapons: an improvised explosive device, two sawn-off shotguns, swords and knives,” prosecutor, Bobbie Cheema QC, told the court.
The ‘explosive device’ was in the form of a nail bomb containing 458 pieces of shrapnel, and a partly assembled pipe bomb.
It was also alleged that they planned the assassination of the EDL leader, according to the Telegraph.
The EDL rally which they planned to attack was based in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, and their failure to detonate explosives at the event was only due to the fact that it was brought to a close at 2pm, instead of 4pm, when the men arrived.
Omar Khan, Zohaib Ahmed, Jewel Uddin, Mohammed Saud, Mohammed
Hasseen and Anzal Hussain – one of which was under MI5
surveillance - have been warned that they face “significant
custody.” All pleaded guilty.
The men had printed numerous copies of a leaflet entitled “Operation in defense of the prophet Mohammed,” which was shown to the courtroom, describing the British Queen as a ‘female devil.’ Prosecution told the court that they wanted to “execute a terrible vengeance” on the EDL.
EDL leader Tommy Robinson and a group of his supporters collected outside the Old Bailey on Thursday to see ‘justice done.’
Prosecution stated that had the attack gone ahead, it could have “led to a tit-for-tat spiral of violence and terror.”
The sentencing falls the day after a north London Islamic community center was burnt down in a suspected arson attack. Police and fire officials confirmed the presence of EDL-graffiti at the scene of the ‘suspicious’ event.
The UK saw Islamophobic sentiment intensify in the wake of the Woolwich murder, after which the English Defense League (EDL) arranged thousand-strong marches.
Two men have already been arrested for fire-bombing a mosque in
an Islamic district of the northeastern seaport of Grimsby on May
27, fueling fears that a divide between Muslims and non-Muslims
in the UK’s cities is deepening.