Isil fanatic who planned to assassinate Theresa May caught after two-year MI5 operation, court hears

An Islamic State fanatic plotted to assassinate Prime Minister Theresa May in a suicide attack on 10 Downing Street, a court has heard.

Naa'imur Zakariyah Rahman, 20, was encouraged to cause carnage in Britain by an uncle who had joined Isil and died in a drone strike in Syria, jurors were told.

He allegedly thought he was just days away from inflicting "lethal violence" with a knife and a suicide vest before his arrest last November.

But his plan was uncovered by a two-year MI5 surveillance operation which involved an agent posing as a senior Isil official in Syria, the Old Bailey heard.

Prosecutor Mark Heywood QC read out Telegram chat in which Rahman was allegedly snared by the fake Amir.

On September 14 last year, Rahman said: "Can you put me in a sleeper cell ASAP? I want to do a suicide bomb on Parliament. I want to attempt to kill Theresa May."

The next day, he said: "My objective is to take out my target. Nothing less than the death of the leaders of Parliament."

The court heard Rahman went on to praise the Manchester arena bomber, saying he "did well".

He allegedly said he thought about wearing "a vest", driving past Parliament and "pushing the button" to "clear the entire block".

Jurors heard he said: "Everyone inside, including the Prime Minister would be dead."

Rahman talked about the MI5 building but allegedly said: "Getting outside Parliament when all the leaders are there is simple, you can walk right outside."

On September 23 last year, Rahman also said he had an idea based on what his uncle had told him about the Isil development of poison, jurors were told.

Rahman is accused of conducting reconnaissance, recording a pledge of allegiance, and delivering a rucksack and jacket to be fitted with explosives.

On November 1, Rahman was introduced to another member of the network called Shaq, an undercover police officer, to help him get a blade and suicide vest.

Rahman allegedly told him: "If you can put a belt on me, I'd actually want to do that."

He said he would aim to strike when Mrs May came out of 10 Downing Street to talk to the press, jurors heard.

If he could not get to her, he would kill a few guards then detonate himself to create "big news", the court heard.

Jurors were shown covert video footage of a meeting in Shaq's car in a PC World car park in Brixton on November 6 last year.

In it, Rahman said he would get past the gate and make a "10-second sprint" for the door of Number 10. He allegedly said his main objective was to "take her head off".

Mr Heywood told jurors: "His settled conclusion was that lethal violence here, directed at the very heart of the United Kingdom Government, was the only effective way to pursue his intentions.

"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."

He said Rahman planned a full frontal attack and fully expected to die.

**What is Islamic State?** A salafi Islamist extremist group that controls territory in the middle east and sponsors terrorist activity internationally. **What are its aims?** A worldwide Islamic caliphate - a religious government without borders. **What is it actually called?** In the west, the group is known as Isil (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant) or Isis (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria). The militants themselves prefer to be called “Islamic State” in recognition of their self-declared caliphate. Daesh is an abbreviation of *Dawlat al-Islamiyah f’al-Iraq wa al-Sham*, and is the derogatory name used by many Muslims. **What terror attacks has it carried out?** Isil has claimed responsibility for numerous atrocities, including the Brussels suicide bombings in March 2016, the Paris attacks of 13 November 2015 and the London ramming and stabbing rampages of 2017. As its territorial power has shrunk, the group has switched to sponsoring more frequent and less strategically ambitious “lone wolf” attacks. **Where is it based?** Since 2014, Isil’s de facto capital was the city of Raqqa in Syria. However, the group lost control of Raqqa in late 2017 to a US-backed coalition force. In Iraq Isil was based in the city of Mosul, but was driven out by Iraqi security forces in mid-2017. It now lacks a capital, but retains footholds in a number of states.

The defendant is also accused of helping his friend Mohammad Aqib Imran, 22, join Isil in Syria by recording a sponsorship video.

Mr Heywood said the men knew each other well and shared the same "warped ideology".

On Imran, he said: "He elected to travel and set about assembling money, acquiring a fake passport, engaging in research and otherwise equipping himself with the information and means to travel aboard for violence for terrorist purposes.

Jurors heard how both defendants were engaged in chat with MI5 role players, even though they discussed the dangers of "spies".

On October 23 last year, Rahman met a contact known as Abu Waleed in a Shepherd's Bush shopping centre.

He told the agent that he planned to use a suicide belt, drone, improvised explosive device and poison, referred to as P or "curry mix".

He allegedly divulged the targets of the MI5 building and Parliament. Meanwhile, Imran was asking his MI5 role-player to get him a passport quickly.

At a further meeting on November 15 last year, Rahman allegedly said: "They're gonna s*** it, especially her who is inside."

Three days later, Rahman carried out reconnaissance around Whitehall, walking past the entrance to Downing Street, the court heard.

Rahman, from Finchley, north London, has denied two counts of preparing terrorist acts.

Imran, of Sparkbrook, Birmingham, has pleaded not guilty to preparing terrorist acts and possessing a terrorist document on his Kindle entitled How To Survive In The West - A Mujahid's Guide 2015.