Two arrested over ‘plot to attack New York synagogue’

Men bought three pistols, ammunition and inert grenade after seven-month sting operation, police and Manhattan prosecutors say Police in New York have arrested two North African-born men in a sting operation after they bought a hand grenade and guns in order to attack a synagogue, authorities said on Thursday. Algerian-born Ahmed Ferhani, 26, and 20-year-old Moroccan-born Mohammed Mamdouh bought three pistols, ammunition and an inert grenade after a seven-month sting operation, police and Manhattan prosecutors said. The plot, unravelled on Wednesday, was the 13th planned attack by Islamist militants on New York City since the 9/11 attacks, authorities said. New York has remained a target for al-Qaida, and police were put on heightened alert following the 2 May raid in which US special forces killed the al-Qaida leader, Osama bin Laden in Pakistan. In a separate case two years ago, four men were arrested for placing what they thought were explosives outside synagogues in the Bronx. The men, who were caught in an FBI sting operation, were videotaped making vitriolic anti-Semitic statements to an FBI informant. They were convicted following a trial at Manhattan federal court and await sentencing. “We are disturbed by the news reports of a home-grown terror plot aimed at Jewish communal institutions in New York City. “Especially in the wake of Osama bin Laden’s death, we are actively engaging the Federation Movement across North America to help communities be prepared, alert and secure against the heightened threat,” the Jewish Federations of North America said in a statement. New York United States guardian.co.uk

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