Leicester property raided over al-Qaeda in Syria terror probe led by German police

Police raided a property in the Leicester area as part of a German investigation into individuals accused of providing support for an al Qaeda-linked terror group in Syria.

Officers raided a property in the Leicester area in the early hours of Wednesday (8 January), Leicestershire Police said in a statement.

A spokeswoman said: "Officers from the East Midlands special operations unit have executed a search warrant at a residential address in Leicester."

The raid was conducted in coordination with a large-scale police operation in Germany, which saw properties raided in the state of North-Rhine Westphalia. The operation targeted two unnamed individuals suspected of providing support to Syrian terrorist group Jabhat al-Nusra.

The group, which recently re-named itself Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, was al Qaeda's main Syrian affiliate.

Leicestershire Police would not disclose whether any arrests had been made in the operation, while a spokeswoman for the German Federal Prosecutors Office would not provide any further details of the operation when contacted on Friday (10 February) and said the investigation was "ongoing".

On 8 February, the prosecutor's office said in a statement: "The two suspects are accused of having supported the foreign terrorist organisation JaN for several years.

"They were supposed to collect donations and to participate in the organisation and implementation of aid convoys.

"Specifically, medical devices, medicines and foodstuffs have been delivered to Syria through organisations identified as 'Medizin mit Herz' (Medicine of Heart) and 'Medizin ohne Grenzen' (Medicine without Borders).

"The purpose of the search is to provide further evidence," he added.

The Metropolitan Police said two search warrants had been issued last month at the request of the Munich prosecutor's office.