Bomb plot guilty had 7/7 link

Five terrorists have been found guilty of plotting deadly bomb attacks in the UK - in a trial which has thrown up disturbing links with 7/7. After a year long case at the Old Bailey the jury delivered its verdict today, finding five of the seven men guilty.

The so-called 'fertiliser bomb' plot trial has also revealed links between those behind the bomb plans, and those who carried out the 7/7 attacks in London.

Security services are sure to face probing questions after the trial showed they were aware of the 7/7 terrorists before the 2005 attacks took place.

Today ring-leader Omar Khyam was found guilty of conspiracy to cause explosions made form chemical fertiliser.

Targets included Bluewater shopping centre and London nightclub the Ministry of Sound.

Waheed Mahmood, 35; Jawad Akbar, 23, both from Crawley, West Sussex; Anthony Garcia, 25, of Barkingside, east London; and Salahuddin Amin, 32, of Luton, Bedfordshire, were found guilt along with Khyam.

Seven British men were arrested in March 2004 following the discovery of more than half a ton of chemical fertiliser in storage in west London.

Prosecutor David Waters QC said not everyone involved in the plot was before the court.

The terror cell was said to have schemed with Canadian Mohammed Momin Khawaja and American Mohammed Junaid Babar.

The defendants denied conspiring to cause explosions likely to endanger life between January 1 2003 and March 31 2004.

Khyam and Garcia also denied a charge under the Terrorism Act of possessing 600kgs (1,300lbs) of ammonium nitrate fertiliser for terrorism. Khyam and Shujah Mahmood further denied possessing aluminium powder for terrorism.

The defendants denied there was a plot. Some said they did not know what the fertiliser was, that they were only interested in sending money and supplies to fighters in Kashmir and Afghanistan, or that they were duped.

The jury of seven men and five women were out for a record number of days and were in the seventh week of deliberations.

Shujah Mahmood, 20; and Nabeel Hussain, 22, were found not guilty.

The operation

It was a joint operation by the security services, Special Branch and the Metropolitan Police's anti-terrorism squad.

They bugged an address in Slough, Berkshire, where Khyam was staying and Jawad Akbar's then home in Uxbridge, west London. Another listening device was placed in Khyam's silver Suzuki Vitara car and Garcia's Audi A4.

Some 100 telephone lines were intercepted and there were 50 searches of property and baggage.

Some 3,500 hours of audio tape were recorded, broken down into 60 transcripts, and then pored over by police officers.

A staggering 34,000 man-hours of surveillance took place, with 7,600 people involved in the investigation.

The court heard evidence from two members of the British security service, whose identities were shielded from the defendants by a large screen.

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