Three British Muslims plotted suicide bombing campaign bigger than 7/7, court hears

Three British Muslims plotted a suicide bombing campaign on a scale greater than the July 2005 attacks, a court has heard today.

Irfan Naseer, Irfan Khalid and Ashik Ali planned to cause "mass deaths and casualties" by detonating eight rucksack bombs in crowded places, prosecutors said.

The trio were arrested Birmingham last September after they began experimenting with chemicals following terror training in Pakistan, it was claimed.

Naseer and Khalid had also trained in making poisons and using guns recorded martyrdom videos while in jihadi camps, Woolwich Crown Court was told.

After returning to Britain in August 2012 they recruited others to help raise funds and sent four friends for terror training in Pakistan.

The group was influenced by al-Qaeda preacher Anwar Al-Awlaki and one member allegedly described their plot as "another 9/11".

All three deny charges of preparing acts of terrorism in the UK.

Naseer, Khalid and Ali were involved in fraudulent fund raising on the street of Birmingham during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, the court heard.

They and friends filled collection buckets with £13,500 by pretending to collect for the legitimate charity Muslim Aid, it was claimed.

The money was then invested by a fourth man who lost £9,000 of it, jurors were told.

That man has pleaded guilty to fund raising for terrorism.

Four men that the prosecution claim Naseer, Khalid and Ali sent to Pakistan have pleaded guilty to terror training offences.