UK terror raids: Four arrests as army bomb disposal called in

An army bomb disposal team was sent to a house in northern England after police officers arrested four men on suspicion of planning a new terror attack in the UK. Loud bangs heard during the raids were not explosions, the North East Counter Terrorism Unit (CTU) confirmed. Instead, they were part of the method officers used to gain access to three homes in Sheffield and one in Chesterfield. A cordon was set up and nearby homes evacuated at the site in central Chesterfield after the bomb disposal unit was deployed. A 31-year-old man living at the address was arrested on suspicion of terror offences. Three other men aged 22, 36 and 41 were arrested in the Burngreave, Meersbrook and Stocksbridge areas of Sheffield. All four suspects have been taken to a police station in West Yorkshire for questioning. They were detained on suspicion of being concerned in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism under the Terrorism Act 2000. “The arrests were intelligence-led and pre-planned as part of an ongoing investigation by Counter Terrorism Policing North East and MI5,” West Yorkshire Police said in a statement. It added: “The public may have heard loud bangs at the time police entered the properties. We would like to reassure them that this was part of the method of entry to gain access.” Superintendent Una Jennings of South Yorkshire Police said: “I understand our local communities will have concerns about the police activity but I want to offer my reassurance that we will continue to serve and protect the public of South Yorkshire.” Derbyshire`s Assistant Chief Constable Bill McWilliam added: “We of course understand that police activity of this nature can be unsettling. “However, please be reassured, the arrest we wanted to make has been made. “Our advice remains to be vigilant, which is not different to our day-to-day advice in the current climate, but continue to go about your business as usual.” Britain has suffered five terror attacks so far this year, four of which led to multiple loss of life, while security chiefs say another nine plots have been thwarted since March. The Government is currently drawing up a new counter-terror strategy due for release early next year.