A major anti-terrorism raid in the UK
BIRMINGHAM, England (CNN) -- A major anti-terrorism raid in the UK was intended to foil a plot to kidnap a Muslim soldier serving in the British Army, and behead him, according to a security source.
Police arrested eight people during a series of early-morning raids in Birmingham, central England, early Wednesday, according to statements released by police and the Home Office.
The Home Office said the eight were arrested in Birmingham by West Midlands police under the country's anti-terrorism laws.
The arrests did not involve a plot to cause mass casualties, but instead the kidnap of a British Muslim soldier who has served in Afghanistan, a senior security source told CNN.
Once kidnapped, the attackers allegedly planned to videotape the torture and execution of the soldier for later publication on the Internet.
Media reports said the plot would have involved an "Iraq-style" execution.
Former Scotland Yard commander John O'Connor said: "This is a major breakthrough in thwarting what seems to be a genuine and terrifying potential crime. These are not the kind of people that take hostages."
According to West Midlands Police, the eight were arrested on "suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism under the Terrorism Act 2000."
"A number of addresses in Birmingham have been secured and sealed off and are currently being searched by officers from West Midlands Police and Midlands Counter Terrorism Unit," West Midlands police said.
On January 23, British police arrested five men in terror raids across northern England. (Full story)
Two of the men -- Rizwan Ditta, 29, and Mohammad Bilal, 25, both from Halifax -- were charged Monday under the Terrorism Act 2000. The other three men are still being questioned by the Greater Manchester Police.
"This operation is a reminder of the real and serious nature of the terrorist threat we face," the Home Office said Wednesday.
Birmingham is about 100 miles northwest of London.
Security services believe a terrorist attack is highly likely in Britain. An attack on London's public transport in 2005 killed 52 people, and the country is on its second highest alert level.
Last year the head of MI5, Britain's domestic spy service, said that about 30 terrorism plots were being worked on and agents were monitoring around 1,600 suspects.
