Manchester synagogue attacker's associate 'planned MoD terror attack', court hears

An associate of the Manchester synagogue attacker had planned a terror attack on the Ministry of Defence, a court heard today.

A “long-standing, committed jihadist” planned the attack on a defence base with the man who killed two people at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation synagogue in Manchester last year, the court heard.

Mohammed Bashir, 31, drove Jihad Al-Shamie, 35, on a 10-hour round trip to complete reconnaissance at the UK Defence Academy in Swindon on August 14 last year.

After the visit, they deliberately disposed of their mobile phones.

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Al-Shamie was shot dead on October 2 by police after he committed his terrorist attack on the Manchester synagogue.

After the attack, police analysed two phones seized from Al-Shamie, which revealed WhatsApp messages and voice note exchanges between the two.

The phones were seized when Al-Shamie was arrested in February 2025 over an alleged breach of a non-molestation order, as well as a September 2025 arrest when he was held on suspicion of rape, Manchester Crown Court was told.

Prosecutor Jonathan Polnay KC said: “The prosecution case is that Mohammad Bashir is a long-standing, committed jihadist.

“The attack that was being planned was of the sort that Jihad Al-Shamie in fact carried out on October 2, an attack involving weapons that would cause multiple fatalities and have national and international impact.

“Analysis of Bashir and Al-Shamie’s messages to each other demonstrated they were both close associates and both shared an extremist worldview.

“They were both interested in, and regularly discussed, violent jihad.

"CCTV from the Sunnah Mosque in Manchester, combined with [data from a phone belonging to Al-Shamie], demonstrates that both men were planning a terrorist attack on the [defence] Station at Shrivenham in advance of 14 August."

Mohammed Nawaz KC, defending, said Bashir's parents and family were practising Muslims and he was brought up as a peaceable and non-violent Sunni Muslim.

Mr Nawaz said testimonials described Bashir as "a decent, hard-working, caring man" and people were "surprised and shocked" at his offending.

"Somewhere along the line something must have changed from the way he was brought up. Something changed in his thinking and his approach and his interpretation of his religion."

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He went on to say that Bashir met Al-Shamie in 2023, but was unaware of his extreme views.

Nawaz said there was no evidence that Bashir and Al-Shamie had discussed or planned an attack over many months. The first evidence of that came in August 2025 from the CCTV from the mosque.

Nawaz also said an important element of mitigation was that Bashir had a change of heart after he drove to the Defence Academy at Shrivenham.

His contact with Al-Shamie "tailed off", he said, and there was no attack involving Bashir.

"There was a genuine change of heart on the part of the defendant," he said.

Bashir, of Shaftesbury Road, Cheetham, pleaded guilty to the preparation of terrorist acts last month.

He is Manchester-born but also holds a Pakistani passport and has no previous convictions.

Bashir was arrested at Manchester Airport on November 27 but was not charged in relation to the synagogue attack.

Melvin Cravitz, 66, and Adrian Daulby, 53, were killed when Al-Shamie, a Syrian-born UK citizen, drove his Kia Picanto into the gates of the synagogue and began to attack the congregation with a knife, whilst wearing a fake suicide belt.

MoD Shrivenham is home to the UK Defence Academy, the court was told, which provides defence and security education to the British Armed Forced, UK government, UK industry and overseas personnel.

There will be up to 4,000 staff, contractors, students and visitors on site at any given time.

The sentencing hearing continues.

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