A British ISIS-supporter plotted to assassinate UK Prime Minister Theresa May with a suicide bomb attack in the heart of government, a court heard on Tuesday.
The plot by Naa'imur Zakariyah Rahman, 20, to target the premier’s residence at 10 Downing Street were unravelled within days of his planned attack by an intelligence official posing as a senior ISIS leader in Syria, a jury in London was told.
Mr Rahman, of north London, had laid out his plans during discussions with an officer from the domestic security service, MI5, via the encrypted messaging service Telegram.
“I want to do a suicide bomb on Parliament. I want to attempt to kill Theresa May," he allegedly wrote in one of his messages. The following day, he said: “My objective is to take out my target. Nothing less than the death of the leaders of Parliament.”
Details of the alleged plot emerged on the first day of the trial of Mr Rahman, who was arrested in November last year.
Mr Rahman's uncle had joined ISIS in Syria and had allegedly encouraged his nephew to attack the UK before he himself was killed in a drone strike, the court was told.
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During the exchanges with the MI5 officer, Mr Rahman praised the Manchester Arena bomber, Salman Abedi, who killed 22 people when he detonated a rucksack containing explosive and metal shards in June last year, the court heard.
He allegedly said that he thought about wearing “a vest” himself before driving past parliament and pushing the button to “clear the entire block”. He added: "Everyone inside, including the Prime Minister would be dead.”
Mr Rahman has been accused of preparing terrorist acts by carrying out a recce of the site, recording a pledge of allegiance to ISIS and delivering a rucksack and jacket to be fitted with explosives.
Prosecutor Mark Heywood said he had been preparing a “full frontal assault” on the police-guarded gates that block Downing Street from passers-by – and then the door of No10 itself.
“Before his arrest prevented it, he was, he believed, just days away from his objective, which was no less than a suicide attack, by blade and explosion, on Downing Street and, if he could, upon the Prime Minister Theresa May herself,” Mr Heywood said.
“In this, he expected to die. But he also hoped for personal reward beyond death and, in doing so, to cause death and great fear in a place and to people symbolic of the country itself.”
The case continues.
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Results
5pm Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m
Winner No Riesgo Al Maury, Szczepan Mazur (jockey), Ibrahim Al Hadhrami (trainer)
5.30pm Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m
Winner Marwa W’Rsan, Sam Hitchcott, Jaci Wickham.
6pm Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m
Winner Dahess D’Arabie, Al Moatasem Al Balushi, Helal Al Alawi.
6.30pm Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 2,200m
Winner Safin Al Reef, Connor Beasley, Abdallah Al Hammadi.
7pm Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 2,200m
Winner Thulbaseera Al Jasra, Shakir Al Balushi, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami.
7.30pm Maiden (TB) Dh 80,000 2,200m
Winner Autumn Pride, Szczepan Mazur, Helal Al Alawi.
If you go:
The flights: Etihad, Emirates, British Airways and Virgin all fly from the UAE to London from Dh2,700 return, including taxes
The tours: The Tour for Muggles usually runs several times a day, lasts about two-and-a-half hours and costs £14 (Dh67)
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is on now at the Palace Theatre. Tickets need booking significantly in advance
Entrance to the Harry Potter exhibition at the House of MinaLima is free
The hotel: The grand, 1909-built Strand Palace Hotel is in a handy location near the Theatre District and several of the key Harry Potter filming and inspiration sites. The family rooms are spacious, with sofa beds that can accommodate children, and wooden shutters that keep out the light at night. Rooms cost from £170 (Dh808).
