LONDON: British police said on Tuesday they had charged two men with belonging to the banned Iran-backed group Hezbollah and attending terrorism training camps in Lebanon.
The men were arrested at their home addresses in London in April and rearrested last week when they were subsequently charged with a total of nine terrorism offenses.
“These arrests and charges follow a painstaking investigation by detectives of Counter Terrorism Policing London, who have worked closely with a number of overseas law enforcement colleagues,” said Commander Dominic Murphy, head of London’s Counter Terrorism Policing.
“I want to reassure the public that I do not assess there is an ongoing threat to the wider public as a result of the activities of these two individuals.”
Annis Makki, 40, is charged with attending a terrorist training camp at the Birket Jabbour air base in Lebanon in 2021, being involved in the preparation of terrorist acts, being a member of Hezbollah, and expressing support both for Hezbollah and the banned militant group Hamas.
Mohamed Hadi, 33, is also accused of belonging to Hezbollah and attending a training camp in Baffliyeh in south Lebanon in 2015 and at the Birket Jabbour air base in 2021.
Both men are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ court later on Tuesday.