Three men accused of terrorist attacks, attempted assaults in U.S. and Europe
· Toronto Sun
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Three men have been accused of terrorist attacks and attempted assaults that targeted Jewish communities across the United States and Europe.
The U.S. Justice Department said in a news release Tuesday that charges have been laid against 32-year-old Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, a dual Iranian-Iraqi national, 48-year-old Mohsen Mohajeri, an Iranian national, and 35-year-old Mohammad Ali al-Hassani, an Iraqi national, with terrorism-related offences.
The charges include conspiring to provide material support to foreign terrorist organizations, conspiring to provide material support for acts of terrorism, providing material support for acts of terrorism, conspiring to bomb a place of public use, and financing terrorism.
In addition, al-Saadi is accused of attempted acts of terrorism transcending national boundaries and attempted destruction of property by means of fire or explosives.
Of the three accused, only al-Saadi is in custody.
Alleged attacks in support of terror groups
Officials with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York allege the trio was involved in nearly 20 attacks and attempted assaults in support of Kata’ib Hizballah and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), including a September terrorist plot at a British Royal Air Force Base in Fairford where American armed forces and military aircraft were stationed.
Of the 18 terrorist attacks in the spring for which a new terrorist group – using the pseudonym Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya – claimed responsibility in Europe, seven took place in the U.K. The attacks involved arsons, explosives, and in one instance, a near-fatal stabbing in London of two Jewish men, including a dual U.S.-British citizen.
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“Anyone who plans a terrorist plot on a military base housing American service members will be prosecuted by the United States government,” said Attorney General Todd Blanche. “The defendants listed in the indictment allegedly supported two foreign terrorist organizations, and al-Saadi allegedly coordinated with his co-defendants in the days leading up to the attempted terrorist plot.”
Attempted to coordinate plans from jail
It is alleged that al-Hassani and Mohajeri relied on a network of contacts in the U.K. to hatch their plans. The third man, al-Saadi, was jailed when he allegedly attempted to coordinate an attack with the other two by passing coded messages through third parties.
U.S. authorities had already charged al-Saadi in May for working with and on behalf of Kata’ib Hizballah, the IRGC, and other designated foreign terrorist organizations. It is alleged that the longtime operative of terror groups planned and promoted approximately 18 terrorist attacks in Europe and attempted to bomb a synagogue in New York.
It is alleged that the trio were personally involved in planning many of the European attacks, and that al-Saadi and Mohajeri helped create and publish online propaganda videos of these attacks.
“The threat presented by Iran and Iran-backed terrorist groups to America and our allies is not hypothetical — it is very real,” said U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald. “Our Office will not stop working to address and disrupt this threat, and to prosecute those responsible.”