04-03-2008, 08:29 PM
[center]<b><span style='font-size:21pt;line-height:100%'>Men accused of suicide bomb plan</span></b>[/center]
<b>A group of men charged over an alleged plot to blow up passenger planes wanted to create deaths on an almost unprecedented scale, a court has heard.</b>
Prosecutor Peter Wright said the victims of the suicide attacks would be an "unwitting civilian population".
Homemade devices were to be smuggled on to the aircraft and detonated mid-flight, the court in London heard.
The eight men all deny conspiring to murder others and endangering aircraft bound for the US and Canada in 2006.
The trial at Woolwich Crown Court in south-east London is expected to last eight months.
The defendants are Abdul Ahmed Ali, aka Ahmed Ali Khan, 27, of Walthamstow, Assad Sarwar, 24, of High Wycombe, Tanvir Hussain, 27, of no fixed address, and Mohammed Gulzar, 26, of Barking.
Also charged, are Ibrahim Savant, 27, of Walthamstow, Arafat Waheed Khan, 26, of Walthamstow, Waheed Zaman, 23, of Walthamstow and Umar Islam, aka Brian Young, 29, of High Wycombe.
<img src='http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44537000/jpg/_44537340_comp226_170.jpg' border='0' alt='user posted image' />
<b>EIGHT ACCUSED MEN
TOP ROW OF PICTURE (L-R) :</b>
Abdul Ahmed Ali, 27 - Assad Sarwar, 24 - Tanvir Hussain, 27 - Mohammed Gulzar, 26
<b>BOTTOM ROW (L-R) :</b>
Ibrahim Savant, 27 - Arafat Waheed Khan, 26 - Waheed Zaman, 23 - Umar Islam, 29
After their arrests in August 2006, airport security was massively tightened in the UK, causing long delays at major airports.
On Wednesday, trial judge Mr Justice Calvert-Smith oversaw the swearing-in of the jury.
Jurors were told they may not be able to serve if they have links to the police, security services or Heathrow airport, or if they had been a victim of a terrorist incident.
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