Twelve men, including some reportedly from Bangladesh or of Bangladeshi origin, were on Monday arrested in a nationwide early morning counter-terror swoop described as a "large-scale" and "intelligence-led" operation prompted by suspicion that they were planning an al-Qaeda "inspired" attack involving explosives.
Media reports quoting counter-terror sources stressed that the arrests were not linked to the recent suicide bombing in the Swedish capital Stockholm by an Iraqi-born man who had lived in Britain.
Nor were they related to warnings that al-Qaeda was planning a Mumbai-style attack in Europe.
The men were detained on suspicion of ``the commission, preparation or instigation of an act of terrorism’’ in Britain but police declined to give details saying that investigations were still at an early stage. Three arrests were made in London, five in Cardiff and four in Stoke-on-Trent, an English mining city known for pottery manufacturing. The alleged suspects, whose identities were not disclosed, were aged between 17 and 28.
Police said all were arrested at or near their home addresses. A number of properties including their homes were being searched. John Yates of Scotland Yard’s counter-terror unit described it as a "large scale, pre-planned and intelligence-led operation involving several forces".
"The operation is in its early stages so we are unable to go into detail at this time about the suspected offences. However, I believe it was necessary at this time to take action in order to ensure public safety," he said.
There was no change in Britain’s threat level which remained at ``severe’’ denoting that an attack was highly likely but not imminent. Investigations continued into the British links of Taimour Abdulwahab al- Abdaly who blew himself up in Stockholm earlier this month. He lived in Luton, a town thought to be a hub of extremist elements. He was thrown out of the town's main mosque in 2007 for propagating violent "jihad".
