Fears Briton Imran Khawaja, a major figure in the Isil-linked terror group Rayat al-Tawheed in Syria, may have been planning terror attacks here
A senior Isil jihadist who faked his own death to try and slip back to the UK could have been planning a terror attack here, a police commander signalled.
Briton Imran Khawaja was a major figure in the Isil-linked terror group Rayat al-Tawheed in Syria and in one video was seen holding a severed head.
He appeared a number of promotional films for the fanatics encouraging others to join him, including one called “Five Star Jihad”.
In May last year he and his group faked his death with messages on social media in an attempt to try and slip back to the UK.
However, Khawaja, who received terror training in Syria, was caught at Dover just days after his reported death as he tried to get back in to the UK.
There were fears last night over his reasons for coming back, raising the prospect he may have planned to launch an attack here.
Commander Richard Walton, head of the Met's Counter Terrorism Command, said: "Imran Khawaja was not a vulnerable teenager that has travelled out to Syria and been coerced to travel to Syria.
"This is a man who has chosen the path of terrorism. We don't know why he came back. We don't know what he was planning.
"But this is a dangerous man, a trained terrorist."
Khawaja, 27, a bodybuilder, received firearms training at a base run by Rayat al-Tawheed and was in the country for six months.
On social media and in promotional videos he was known as Abu Daigham al Baritani or Abu Daigham al-Britani.
One video, Five Star Jihad, presented a vision of daily life at the Rayat al Tawheed training camp and encouraged others to join them.
Khawaja, formerly of Southall, London, was also seen in a more disturbing video which included a bag of severed heads.
His face covered to avoid detection, he picked up one of the heads to show to the camera, while a caption read: “British ISIL fighter Abu Daigham al-Britani with Government soldier's head Syria”.
Prosecutor Mark Dawson told Westminster Magistrates Court at an earlier hearing: “We say he is a senior member of that group because that group publishes media on things like Facebook and within that media are videos of members of that group in a training camp for example, driving in a convoy in military vehicles with anti-aircraft weapons and heavy machine-guns.
He was arrested at Dover on June 3 along with his taxi driver cousin Tahir Bhatti, 45, of Watford, Herts, who had travelled out to Bulgaria to help him return.
At the Old Bailey last month Khawaja admitted four charges of preparation of terrorist acts, attendance at a place used for terrorist training, receiving weapons training and possession of a firearm for terrorist purposes.
A charge of soliciting to murder between 25 January and 4 June 2014 was left to lie on the file after prosecutor Brian Altman QC said the Crown had decided to accept the pleas.
The plea can now be reported after the judge, Mr Justice Baker, lifted a Contempt of Court order at the Old Bailey on Tuesday.
That came after Bhatti, a father-of-seven, admitted assisting an offender by helping him to return to the UK after his terrorist training.
The prosecution accepted the plea and asked for further charges of preparation of terrorist acts and failing to disclose information to lie on the file.
Bhatti was alleged to have helped Khawaja by agreeing to provide a replacement phone, funding the purchase of a Kalashnikov assault rifle, using coded messages and helping him avoid arrest by hiring a car to pick him up from Sofia in Bulgaria.
The pair communicated through a simple code via text message and Whatsapp.
The court had heard that another feature of the case was the use of a communications app called Telegram – a secured and encrypted system that could not be intercepted.
Mr Dawson said the "road trip" was carefully orchestrated with the use of code words in messages.
There was talk of being "in a club"and needing "clothes" because of the "puke" and that a "doorman" was not letting him out.
The "club" meant a camp. The "doormen" were those running it. "Puke" related to battlefield material – he needed new clothes.
A third suspect Asim Ali, 33, of Ealing, west London, has also admitted entering into a funding arrangement for the purposes of terrorism by giving £300 to Khawaja between January and June 2014.
One further charge of preparing acts of terrorism was left on the file after he entered the plea on 23 December 2014.
All three will be sentenced on 5 February 201
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