Birmingham bomb plot ringleader sentenced to life

The judge at Woolwich crown court described Irfan Naseer as the “leader, driving force and man in charge” behind the deadly plot. The court heard that the gang wanted to set off bombs in rucksacks using timers, in crowded places, with the aim of killing hundreds of people.

They boasted of creating another 9/11, and planned other atrocities including a gun attack on a synagogue, and using scythes to mow down crowds of innocent civilians.

Mr Justice Henriques said: “Your plot had the blessing of al-Qaeda and you intended to further the aims of al-Qaeda,”

They gleaned their ideas from the pages of the al-Qaeda magazine Inspire, and raised money to finance their efforts by pretending to be fundraisers for muslim charities, collecting up to £12,000.

Read more - Inspire: Inside the al-Qaeda magazine

They were forced to apply for thousands of pounds in extra loans, after losing most of the money trying to make extra cash on the foreign currency markets.

31 year old Naseer’s two accomplices were Irfan Khalid, aged 28, who was jailed for an extended term of 23 years in jail, and Ashik Ali, also 28, who was jailed for 20 years.

The court heard that the gang had recruited four young men, all from Birmingham, and sent them to Pakistan for terrorism training. They had told their families they were going there to attend a madrassa.

However a relative found out about the real reason for their journey and managed to get three of them to return home after just three days. All four of them admitted engaging in conduct in preparation for terrorist acts.

Many deaths planned

Police described it as the most significant terror plot to be discovered since 2006, when they foiled a plot to blow up transatlantic airliners using bombs hidden in soft drink bottles.

Read more: How Britain is foiling terrorism - graphic

The judge told them: “Many deaths were planned by a determined team of individuals who were fully radicalised”. He said they had only been stopped by the intervention of the authorities.