Two Iranians charged over alleged Manchester Jewish community bomb plot

Two Iranian nationals, Rahman Salehi and Salam Ahmadyan, appeared at Westminster magistrates court in London on October 3, 2026, over an alleged plan to attack Manchester’s Jewish community with a homemade explosive device. The men, arrested in Manchester on September 20, were remanded in custody pending a hearing at the Old Bailey on October 23.¹²³

The allegations in court

Police in Britain charged the pair in connection with alleged preparations to carry out terrorism targeting northern England’s Jewish community. Reports described the charge as preparing to commit, or assisting another person to commit, an act of terrorism, although the dossier does not consistently establish the precise legal formulation. The Straits Times reported that the alleged offence concerned conduct on or before September 20.¹²⁴

At their Westminster appearance, Salehi and Ahmadyan confirmed their names, dates of birth and addresses through a Kurdish interpreter, according to The Guardian. Prosecutor Mark Luckett said: “Both defendants are accused of preparing acts of terrorism targeting the Jewish community in Manchester through the use of a homemade explosive device.”¹²

Prosecutors alleged that the defendants surveyed Jewish sites in Manchester and selected the Manchester Jewish Museum and Heaton Park synagogue as possible targets. The Guardian reported that they were also accused of researching targets online and obtaining images, plans and maps.¹²

Prosecutors further alleged that the men sought liquids, components and equipment for an improvised explosive device. According to The Guardian, they obtained a document concerning a bomb made with powdered chlorine and car brake fluid; The Straits Times also reported that chlorine and brake fluid were the proposed ingredients.¹²⁴

Alleged overseas direction

The men allegedly communicated with an unidentified overseas third party who may have been in Iran. Prosecutors said this person directed and coordinated the planning and supplied instructions for constructing the device. The individual was assessed as Iranian and most likely operating from Iran, though the reporting does not identify that person or disclose the basis for the assessment.¹²³

Police arrested Salehi and Ahmadyan in Manchester on September 20. The Guardian reported that they were detained on Newton Street in the Northern Quarter and later held at a London police station. Metropolitan Police officers also searched premises at Epworth Street in Liverpool and Lancaster Road in Salford. Counter-terrorism police said they had disrupted the suspected plot, and Vicki Evans said investigators did not believe there was any continuing threat to the public from the case.¹²³

Security context

Heaton Park synagogue was also the site of a separate attack on October 2, 2025, in which two people were killed and three were injured, according to CBS News and The Guardian. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, addressing the wider issue of Iranian threats, said: “It is no secret that this country faces a range of serious threats from the Iranian regime.” Her comments represented the British government’s position; the available reporting does not establish direct Iranian government involvement in the Manchester allegations.¹³⁴