Manchester Terror Plot Foiled by Undercover Operation
Two men have been found guilty of plotting a terrorist attack in Greater Manchester with the intention to kill as many Jewish people as possible. Detectives believe the planned marauding firearms assault, had it not been thwarted, could have been one of the UK's worst terror atrocities.
Walid Saadaoui, 38, and Amar Hussein, 52, were convicted at Preston Crown Court of preparing acts of terrorism between 13 December 2023 and 9 May 2024. The court heard the pair were Islamist extremists harbouring a visceral dislike of Jewish people.
Undercover Sting Thwarts AK-47 Purchase
The plot unravelled when the men attempted to buy powerful weapons from a man they believed was a fellow extremist. Unbeknownst to them, their supplier, known as 'Farouk', was an undercover operative who had infiltrated jihadist online networks.
Saadaoui was arrested in a police sting on 8 May 2024 at the car park of the Last Drop Hotel in Bolton. He was caught trying to take possession of the following arsenal:
- Two AK-47 style semi-automatic rifles
- A semi-automatic pistol
- Almost 200 rounds of ammunition
Jurors were told the weapons were of the same type used in the 2015 Paris attacks, which killed approximately 130 people.
Brother Found Guilty of Failing to Disclose Information
A third defendant, Bilel Saadaoui, 36 – Walid's brother – was found guilty of failing to disclose information about acts of terrorism covering the same period. All three defendants had denied the allegations during a trial lasting nearly three months.
The Saadaoui brothers, originally from Tunisia but legally resident in the UK for several years, had sworn allegiance to Islamic State (IS) before arriving in the country. Hussein, who had also pledged allegiance to IS, was a former soldier in Saddam Hussein's army.
Following his arrest, Hussein made a statement to police, saying: "Your government … your prime minister sent to Israel weapon to kill our children."
The men had conducted reconnaissance and identified targets for their attack in Greater Manchester before their plot was intercepted by the security services.
