Undercover officer foiled IS plot against Manchester Jewish community

Walid Saadaoui once worked as a holiday entertainer in Tunisia, organising dance shows and quizzes. After moving to the UK and marrying a British woman he became a restaurateur and an avid keeper of birds. All the while he had been hiding a secret: he had pledged allegiance to Islamic State, Chris Osuh, the community affairs correspondent, explains.

On Friday, Saadaoui, 38, and Amar Hussein, 52, were sentenced to life imprisonment after attempting to carry out what could have been one of the deadliest terror attacks in the UK. They had planned a devastating assault on Greater Manchester’s Jewish community.

The fellow IS supporter involved in their plot — known by the codename ‘Farouk’ — was in fact an undercover police officer. Saadaoui’s younger brother, Bilel Saadaoui, was jailed for six years for failing to disclose information about the plan.

United Kingdom, Greater Manchester

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