Police continue to question Iranian men over alleged terror plot

Five men are continuing to be questioned by police over an alleged terror plot in the UK.

The men, including four Iranian nationals, are being held over an alleged plan to “target a specific premises”, the Metropolitan Police said.

They were arrested in Swindon, west London, Stockport, Rochdale and Manchester.

Three other Iranian men were arrested in London on Saturday in relation to a separate counter terrorism investigation.

Last year MI5 said it had responded to 20 Iran-backed plots since January 2022.

Jonathan Hall KC, an independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, said the public was not aware of “how aggressive Iran is willing to be”, adding UK authorities “undoubtedly” need more tools to deal with this particular case.

The use of the internet to organise attacks should be examined “remorselessly,” and people made aware of the full extent of the law, he told the BBC.

Read more: BBC