Two Iranians charged with plotting terrorist attack on UK Jewish community

British counter-terrorism police arrested two Iranian nationals on Oct. 2, charging them with plotting a terrorist attack against the Jewish community in northern England, guancha.cn reported.

Two Iranian Nationals Charged in Manchester Terror Plot

The suspects were identified as 35-year-old Rahman Salehi and 36-year-old Salam Ahmadian. British counter-terrorism police stated that the two men prepared to commit acts of terrorism, or assist others in doing so, in Manchester on the eve of the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. Authorities allege the pair attempted to obtain components and equipment for building an improvised explosive device while conducting reconnaissance on potential targets.

Police reported that Salehi and Ahmadian maintained contact with an overseas third party who may have been located inside Iran. According to British Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, the two men arrived in the United Kingdom a few years ago by small boat from Europe, with one securing asylum and the other keeping an active application pending. Both defendants are scheduled to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Oct. 3.

UK Officials Point to Broad Security Threats from Tehran

Home Secretary Mahmood issued a sharply worded statement following the arrests, connecting the charges to a wider pattern of state-backed activity.

Mahmood stated that it is well known that the UK faces a range of serious threats from the Iranian regime, noting that they target British Jewish communities and seek to suppress critics overseas, often using proxies and criminal networks to obscure their involvement.

Iranian officials have consistently denied involvement in such plots.

The latest charges arrive one year after a deadly attack outside a Manchester synagogue involving a Syrian-British citizen who carried out a vehicle-ramming and knife assault that left two people dead and four severely injured. However, investigators noted that the Oct. 2 charges have no connection to a separate conspiracy targeting the Royal Air Force Fairford base. In that case, a dual British-Iranian citizen was arrested on Oct. 1, prompting British Prime Minister Burnham to state there were strong indications of Iranian participation. Tehran rejected those allegations, calling them groundless and accusing London of stoking anti-Iran sentiment.