An Iranian militia chief accused of coordinating a string of antisemitic attacks in Britain has continued to plot terror attacks from behind bars, according to US authorities.
Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi is accused of orchestrating at least 18 terror attacks across Europe and North America since February.
He is said to have been the mastermind behind the firebombing of a synagogue in London and the stabbing of two Jewish men in Golders Green.
Al-Saadi was arrested in Turkey before being transferred to the US, where authorities now claim he is trying to enlist further proxies amid fears of further attacks.
The authorities have warned that the 32-year-old is using ‘coded language’ in telephone calls from behind bars to relay orders and has directed more than $1million in money transfers.
The FBI has also accused al-Saadi of greenlighting propaganda videos to inspire other dissidents.
Al-Saadi, a dual citizen of Iran and Iraq, faces eight charges of terrorism related to his alleged activities as an operative of the Iraqi militia group Kataib Hezbollah and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, accused of planning an attack on a synagogue, appears in federal court in Manhattan
Al-Saadi is also charged with conspiracy to provide material support to Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya (Hayi), another Iran-backed Iraqi Shia militant group, said to be behind nearly 20 attacks across Europe in less than three months.
All three groups have been designated by the US government as foreign terrorist organisations.
He is also accused of overseeing a plot to kill Jews at synagogues in America.
Al-Saadi told FBI agents he was a ‘leader of the resistance’, which included the IRGC and its proxies.
The suspect is expected to face trial next summer.
While in detention, the FBI claimed that al-Saadi was using telephone calls to communicate with Iranian proxy groups, The Times reported.
During a FaceTime call with a woman thought to be his mother, al-Saadi was heard saying: ‘we shall not care whether we fall upon death or death falls upon us as long as we are on the path of truth.’
The same quote later appeared on social media accounts known to share IRGC propaganda and was seen more than 96,000 times.
In another call with his family in July, he was heard asking about another high-level member of the Kata’ib Hezbollah militia group.
He also allegedly ordered his family to transfer more than $1million to unknown individuals.
One phone call was cut short by the FBI after they heard references to a gun and al-Saadi saying ‘give him money so we can do it’.
The Department of Justice said they were concerned al-Saadi could be using the calls to plot even more terror attacks in Europe or North America.
Al-Saadi has complained about his ‘illegal capture’ and his subsequent detention, which involves near-solitary confinement and restricted contact with family.
Authorities say the measures are necessary to stop him from engaging in terrorism.
He also complained about the quality of the halal food in jail and his lack of Arabic reading materials.
Federal Defenders of New York, his lawyers, said: ‘By keeping Mr al-Saadi in extreme solitary confinement and aggressively curtailing his access to information, the government is violating his rights under the constitution and the third Geneva Convention. We will continue to vigorously challenge these inhumane conditions.’
Al-Saadi’s defence lawyers claim that he was joking with his sister when he referenced the gun, saying his brother-in-law was being forced into a shotgun wedding.
They argued he should be treated as a prisoner of war rather than a criminal detainee.
Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, right, with Qasem Soleimani, former commander of the Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force
Al-Saadi was captured in Turkey through phone calls with an FBI informant who he believed was a fellow jihadist.
He provided the law enforcement officer with photos and maps of Jewish centres in Los Angeles and Scottsdale, Arizona, that he planned to target.
The informant connected him to someone he claimed was a Mexican cartel member and gun for hire who could carry out bombings of Jewish targets for money.
He offered the FBI agent, posing as a cartel member, $100,000 to attack a synagogue and told him the attack should be recorded.
FBI Director Kash Patel described Al-Saadi as a ‘high-value target responsible for mass global terrorism’ and said his arrest was the product of ‘a righteous mission executed brilliantly’ by the agency’s agents and law enforcement partners.
In his statement, Patel thanked US Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack, calling him ‘instrumental in bringing this successful mission home to the United States’.
His lawyers claim Al-Saadi is being persecuted for his relationship with former IRGC leader Qasem Soleimani.
Soleimani was killed by the US in a drone strike in Baghdad on President Trump’s orders.
Al-Saadi had a picture with the former IRGC leader on his social media and had previously promised to avenge his death.
In 2021, he wrote: ‘An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. And coming to Washington and Florida.’
Al-Saadi allegedly posted claims of responsibility for attacks on Snapchat and Telegram in the name of Hayi.
The terror group claimed responsibility for a wave of crimes across the west as they unfolded, but officials believe Hayi was ‘designed to carry out and further the terrorist goals of Kata’ib Hezbollah, and the IRGC’.
Hayi claimed responsibility for arson attacks including an Israeli restaurant in Munich and a synagogue in Skopje, Macedonia.
In the UK, a drone with the group’s logo was flown towards the Israeli embassy in London.
Kenton United Synagogue in Harrow, northwest London, was firebombed in April.
The Metropolitan Police arrested a 17-year-old boy and a 19-year-old man in connection with the attack.
Counter-terror police began investigating whether Iranian proxies were behind the attacks.
Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia – the Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Right – claimed responsibility for the Kenton ‘firebomb’ attack. The pro-Iran group, also known as Hayi, released video footage of a man walking up to the building with what appears to be a petrol bomb and hurling it at the site.
The Amsterdam attack caused a fire and significant damage to the building, but no injuries, according to local media reports.
It followed an explosion outside a Jewish school in Amsterdam, which Al-Saadi celebrated on Snapchat with an Ashab al-Yamin-branded video showing the blast and the assailants fleeing on a motorcycle, the criminal complaint said.
In Paris, police found a homemade bomb consisting of a gasoline-filled container taped to a powerful firework.
Forensic experts said the device contained 650g (about 23oz) of explosives and that it could have produced a large fireball and ignited a significant blaze.
