A senior Iraqi militia commander is under arrest in the US over suspected links to a string of terror attacks against American citizens and Jews, including the stabbing of two Jewish men in Golders Green.
Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, allegedly an operative of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, is accused of plotting 18 attacks across north America and Europe in revenge for the war in Iran, according to prosecutors.
He and unnamed associates are suspected of having links to the arson attack on four ambulances belonging to a Jewish charity Hatzola in Golders Green in March.
According a leading international security expert, his arrest highlighted how easy it was becoming for Iran to recruit terror operatives remotely thanks to the internet.
Prosecutors say Saadi, 32, coordinated and claimed responsibility for the attacks in the name of Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya, a faction of Kataeb Hezbollah.
He appeared in a federal court in New York City, where he smiled throughout his initial appearance but did not speak.
He is charged with six terrorism-related counts, according to an unsealed criminal complaint submitted by the FBI.
Saadi is allegedly a commander in Kataib Hezbollah, a US-designated foreign terrorist organisation operating in Iraq with ties to Iran.
An Iraqi national, he was taken into custody in Turkey before being turned over to the FBI and transported to the US.
He "directed and urged others to attack US and Israeli interests", in retaliation for the Iran war and to "further the terrorist goals of Kata'ib Hizballah and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps", the justice department said in court papers.
It is alleged he has been involved in "the planning, execution and promotion" of some 18 reported terror attacks in Europe and two in Canada against US and Israeli interests since March 9.
Among the incidents linked to Saadi the arson attack on a synagogue in North Macedonia, the bombing of a Bank of New York Mellon building in Amsterdam in mid-March and a thwarted bomb attack on a Bank of America office in Paris on March 28, the complaint said.
UK based security expert Jason Burke described Saadi as a “senior operational commander” with Kataib Hezbollah who had close relations with the Iranian security establishment and had been used to affect proxy attacks in the region and further afield.
He said: “What is really of interest to security analysts in Europe is his connection to 18 attacks in Belgium, France, Norway and also importantly the UK. In the past couple of months, we have seen this wave of apparent terrorist attacks in the UK.
“We had the stabbing of two Jewish men in Golders Green last month, we have attacks on Jewish charities, we have had a range of other attacks that have caused huge consternation.
“It was widely suspected in the security community these were acts linked to Iran but the exact mechanics of that were unclear. What is really interesting in the detention of Saadi is we can see for the first time the operations in real time, of the Iranians in trying the prosecution ofa long distance campaign of low level terror attacks across Europe.
“The Iranians have been doing this sort of thing for a very long time it has always been part of their strategic arsenal, but it has been increasing over years.
“One of the key factors is that it is easier to do this sort of thing now. Once you used to have to either send or recruit quite highly trained operatives, these days you can recruit someone online, give them a few hundred euros and off they go.”
Saadi allegedly tried to recruit an undercover agent to target a prominent US synagogue, which was not identified in the criminal complaint.
He showed the agent, who he thought was a Mexican cartel member, a photo and a map of the site, according to officials.
Prosecutors say Saadi was recorded on a phone call on 1 April asking how much it would cost to hire someone "to carry out a bombing operation" in the US.
He also allegedly provided photos and maps of Jewish centres in Los Angeles and Scottsdale, asking if it was possible to "set the three locations on fire at the same time".
US Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche described the arrest was an example of American law enforcement serving to "disrupt and dismantle foreign terrorist organisations and their leaders".
In a statement he said: "As alleged in the complaint, Al-Saadi directed and urged others to attack US and Israeli interests and to kill Americans and Jews in the US and abroad, and in doing so advance the terrorist goals of Kata'ib Hizballah and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.”
FBI Director Kash Patel described Saadi as a “high-value target responsible for mass global terrorism” and said his arrest was the product of “a righteous mission executed brilliantly” by the agency’s agents and law enforcement partners.
New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch, whose officers investigated Al-Saadi as part of the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, said the case “puts into stark relief the global threats posed by the Iranian regime and its proxies like Kataeb Hezbollah.”
Saadi's attorney, Andrew Dalack, claimed: "He's essentially being subjected to a political prosecution in that he's a prisoner of war and should be treated as such.
“He is being held in solitary confinement, which we think is cruel and unnecessary.”
Last Friday (May 15), Somalia-born Essa Suleiman, 45, appeared at the Old Bailey charged in connection with stabbing Shloime Rand 34, and Norman Shine, 76, with a knife in Golders Green on 29 April.
Rand suffered a punctured lung, and Shine suffered injuries to his head, neck, chest and abdomen.
Before heading to Golders Green, it is alleged Suleiman attacked his friend of 20 years, Ishmail Hussein, at his home in Southwark, south London.
He was charged with three counts of attempted murder and possessing a black-handled knife in a public place.
A plea hearing was set for 25 September with a provisional three-week trial at the Old Bailey scheduled from 1 March, 2027.
The stabbings were declared a terrorist incident by police and prompted Prime Minister Keir Starmer to pledge a crackdown on antisemitism.
So far nine people have been arrested in connection with the arson attack on Jewish community ambulances in Golders Green.
Four Hatzola ambulances were destroyed in the early hours of March 23 in front of a synagogue in Golders Green.
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