Did Hezbollah Plan a Drone Attack on British Soil? British police announced today that two London residents have been charged with terrorism-related offenses, primarily membership in Hezbollah and receiving military training in Lebanon. The two suspects, Anis Maki (40) and Mohammed Al-Hadi Qasir (33), were initially arrested in April and released on bail, but were re-arrested last week and formally indicted. According to the indictments, Maki has been affiliated with Hezbollah since at least early 2020 and publicly expressed support for Hamas following the October 7, 2023 attack. Qasir, meanwhile, has been linked to Hezbollah since February 2015. The charges further state that both men underwent terrorist training at the Barakat Jbour airbase in southern Lebanon in September 2021. This airfield was used by Hezbollah’s aerial unit for drone operations, as revealed by former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant in September 2023, and was later struck by the IDF in January 2024. Maki is also accused of involvement in preparing terrorist activities. Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the London Metropolitan Police’s Counter-Terrorism Command, said the arrests and indictments followed a meticulous investigation carried out by counter-terrorism detectives working closely with multiple international law-enforcement agencies. He emphasized, however, that there is currently no threat to the public stemming from the activities of the two defendants.
