One of the five men arrested in connection with an alleged plot to attack Israel’s embassy in London is an asylum seeker who had been living in a taxpayer-funded property in Rochdale.
The 40-year-old Iranian man was filmed being dragged “semi-naked” by Special Forces from the terraced house on May 3, as part of a major counter-terrorism operation. He was among five individuals arrested under terrorism laws that day, bringing the total number of arrests in the case to eight.
The Met Police said the arrests were made as part of a wider investigation into a suspected Iranian-backed plot to target the Israeli embassy. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the operation reflected “some of the biggest threats we have seen in recent years”, and that officers had apparently foiled the attack “with hours to spare”.
Iran’s foreign minister has “categorically” denied any connection between Iranian nationals and the alleged plot.
MI5 has warned that Tehran has been linked to at least 20 terror plots in the UK since January 2022.
It has since emerged that the man arrested in Rochdale was living in a house managed by Serco, the government contractor responsible for housing asylum seekers on behalf of the Home Office. Both rent and bills for the property are covered by Serco until residents are granted leave to remain.
The Iranian national is believed to have arrived in Britain illegally via a small boat crossing the Channel, before claiming asylum.
Security officials have voiced concern that the Calais route is increasingly being exploited by state-sponsored Iranian operatives seeking to carry out attacks in the UK. It is feared others involved in the alleged plot may have reached British shores using the same method.
Neighbours told the Mail on Sunday that the man had lived at the Rochdale property for more than six months, during which time he had barely interacted with others.
One said: “He never said anything more than ‘Hello’.”
Another neighbour added that a Serco representative had since informed them the firm would no longer be housing asylum seekers at the address.
Anthony Glees, a terrorism expert at Buckingham University, said: “The Calais route presents a clear and present danger to national security.”
A record 11,000 migrants have arrived in Britain via small boats from Calais this year alone. Iranians were the third most common nationality last year, after Afghans and Syrians.
The Home Office and Serco have declined to comment on the case.
