Britain Arrests Four Suspects for Plotting Terror Attacks

Four detained in Britain on suspicion of plotting terrorist attacks. (Reuters)
Four detained in Britain on suspicion of plotting terrorist attacks. (Reuters)
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Britain Arrests Four Suspects for Plotting Terror Attacks

Four detained in Britain on suspicion of plotting terrorist attacks. (Reuters)
Four detained in Britain on suspicion of plotting terrorist attacks. (Reuters)

British police arrested on Tuesday four men on suspicion of plotting terrorist attacks.

Police sent a bomb disposal team to a house in northern England after officers carried out pre-dawn raids to arrest the suspects.

Three men, aged 22, 36 and 41, were held after raids at their homes in Sheffield and a 31-year-old was detained at an address in nearby Chesterfield. Officers then cordoned off one of the houses and evacuated local residents as bomb experts arrived and searches were carried out.

“The arrests were intelligence-led and pre-planned as part of an ongoing investigation by Counter Terrorism Policing North East and (domestic security agency) MI5,” West Yorkshire Police said in a statement.

They added: “The public may have heard loud bangs at the time police entered the properties. We would like to reassure them that this was part of the method of entry to gain access.”

The men have not been charged and were not identified.

There were no details about what the men were suspected of planning. They are being questioned on suspicion of being concerned in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism.

The official terrorist threat level for Britain is "severe," indicating an attack is considered highly likely.

Britain saw five attacks in London and Manchester this year, and Home Secretary Amber Rudd said earlier this month that authorities have foiled nine terror plots since March.



International Criminal Court Refers Hungary to Its Oversight Body for Failing to Arrest Netanyahu 

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, left, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, shake hands after a press statement at the Carmelite Monastery in the Buda Castle in Budapest, Hungary, April 3, 2025. (AP) 
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, left, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, shake hands after a press statement at the Carmelite Monastery in the Buda Castle in Budapest, Hungary, April 3, 2025. (AP) 
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International Criminal Court Refers Hungary to Its Oversight Body for Failing to Arrest Netanyahu 

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, left, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, shake hands after a press statement at the Carmelite Monastery in the Buda Castle in Budapest, Hungary, April 3, 2025. (AP) 
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, left, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, shake hands after a press statement at the Carmelite Monastery in the Buda Castle in Budapest, Hungary, April 3, 2025. (AP) 

A panel of judges at the International Criminal Court reported Hungary to the court’s oversight organization for failing to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when he visited Budapest in April, saying the move undercut the court's ability to bring suspects to justice.

The Israeli leader received a red carpet welcome from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán during a state visit, in defiance of an ICC arrest warrant. Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant are accused of crimes against humanity in connection with the war in Gaza.

Israel is not a member of the court and staunchly rejects the charges.

In a filing released late Thursday, the three-judge panel wrote that “the obligation to cooperate was sufficiently clear to Hungary” and the failure to arrest Netanyahu “severely undermines the Court’s ability to carry out its mandate.”

The ICC has no police force and relies on countries around the world to execute arrest warrants.

The court's oversight body, the Assembly of States Parties has limited powers to sanction Hungary. It will consider the next steps during its annual meeting in December.

The Hungarian leader, regarded by critics as an autocrat and the EU’s most intransigent spoiler in the bloc’s decision-making, has defended his decision to not arrest Netanyahu. During the visit, Orbán said his country’s commitment to the ICC was “ half-hearted ” and began the process to withdraw Hungary from the court.

Orbán signed the Rome Statute, the treaty which created the court, in 2001 during his first term as prime minister.

The court dismissed arguments from Hungary that Parliament never incorporated the court’s statute into Hungarian law, writing “it was Hungary’s responsibility to ensure that such legislation was in place.”

The decision comes as Gaza’s population of more than 2 million Palestinians is in a catastrophic humanitarian crisis, now relying largely on the limited aid allowed into the territory.

Netanyahu and Gallant are accused of using “starvation as a method of warfare” by restricting humanitarian aid, and of intentionally targeting civilians in Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza.