Iran-backed terror suspects plotted attack on US troops using vans packed with fuel, DOJ says

Three suspected Iran-backed terrorists plotted an attack on a British air base housing American troops using vans carrying barrels of fuel, according to a federal indictment unsealed Tuesday by the Justice Department (DOJ).

The eight-count superseding indictment charges Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, Mohsen Mohajeri and Mohammad Ali Al-Hassani with terrorism-related offenses tied to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Kata'ib Hizballah. 

Prosecutors say the suspects targeted RAF Fairford in England, where U.S. military aircraft and personnel were stationed.

"Anyone who plans a terrorist plot on a military base housing American service members will be prosecuted by the United States government," Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a news release.

IRAN UNDER SCRUTINY AFTER PLOT FOILED NEAR UK BASE USED BY US MILITARY

According to the indictment, Al-Hassani directed associates in the United Kingdom to conduct surveillance of RAF Fairford in August, paying one individual to record video of the base's perimeter.

The suspects' associates later obtained three vans and barrels of fuel, researched chemical accelerants and purchased metal objects that could be used as explosive shrapnel, prosecutors said. They also disguised the vans with commercial decals to resemble vehicles belonging to fuel delivery and swimming pool supply businesses.

On Sept. 26, Al-Hassani allegedly directed associates to drive the three vans toward the base. At least two encountered a security roadblock and were unable to proceed. British authorities recovered all three vehicles and arrested their occupants the following morning.

UK POLICE ARREST 'EXPLOSIVE' SUSPECTS NEAR US AIRBASE, KEY TO IRAN WAR

Prosecutors allege Al-Saadi helped coordinate the operation while imprisoned in New York awaiting trial on separate terrorism charges, using telephone calls with family members in Iraq to relay coded messages to his co-conspirators.

During a Sept. 24 call, Al-Saadi allegedly asked about Al-Hassani and instructed relatives to "give him [al-Hassani] money so we can do it."

The alleged plot followed a series of attacks across Europe in March and April that prosecutors say the defendants helped organize on behalf of an Iran-aligned terrorist network. Those attacks targeted synagogues, Jewish organizations, ambulances and an Israeli embassy, and included the stabbing of two Jewish men in London.

Al-Saadi, a dual Iranian Iraqi national, was arrested abroad in May and transferred to U.S. custody. Prosecutors previously accused him of helping direct approximately 18 attacks in Europe and attempting to coordinate an attack on a Manhattan synagogue.

The three defendants face charges, including conspiracy to provide material support to foreign terrorist organizations, financing terrorism and conspiracy to bomb a place of public use. Some charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison.

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