Photo: SSgt Jarad A. Denton / Wikimedia Commons (Public domain)
US Charges Three Men Over Alleged European and American Attacks
United States prosecutors have indicted three men accused of operating on behalf of Iranian-backed groups in nearly 20 attacks and attempted attacks across Europe and the US. The Department of Justice announced the charges on Tuesday, linking the suspects to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Iraq's Kataib Hezbollah.
The defendants named in the indictment face terrorism-related offenses and include:
- Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, a 32-year-old dual Iranian and Iraqi citizen currently in custody in New York.
- Mohammad Ali al-Hassani, a 35-year-old Iraqi national whose whereabouts have not been revealed.
- Mohsen Mohajeri, a 48-year-old Iranian national whose location also remains undisclosed.
Details of the RAF Fairford Base Plot
The updated indictment outlines an alleged plan targeting RAF Fairford in southwest England, a facility used by the US military to deploy bombers. In September, local police were alerted after a farmer reported suspicious activity involving white vans near the air base. Six men were initially arrested and bailed, but two were later re-arrested on suspicion of aiding Iranian intelligence. Days after the incident, the US military pulled all B-1 bombers from the base.
Court documents state that al-Hassani directed operatives to drive vans to the installation, including vehicles loaded with fuel barrels. He allegedly funded the purchase of metal objects to serve as shrapnel and arranged for the vehicles to be disguised as fuel delivery trucks. Prosecutors allege al-Saadi coordinated the efforts by passing coded phone messages to his mother and sister in Iraq, which were then communicated to al-Hassani and Mohajeri.
Prior Allegations and Recent Security Moves
Al-Saadi was first charged by US authorities in May, accused of orchestrating retaliatory attacks against American, Israeli, and Jewish targets. Those allegations included an April incident in London where two Jewish men were stabbed, alongside arson attacks on synagogues, Jewish schools, and Israeli businesses in Europe. In June, al-Saadi pleaded not guilty and described himself as a prisoner of war while being held without bail.
Manhattan US Attorney Jamie McDonald highlighted the ongoing threat posed to allies and military personnel by groups affiliated with Iran. Following separate threats from Iran, military flight tracking showed that the US recently relocated at least a dozen aircraft from RAF Mildenhall, another British air base.
Source: US charges 3 ‘Iranian-backed’ men over alleged plot at UK Fairford air base