British Arrest 10 in Terror Raids

Police staged large-scale raids against suspected terrorists, seizing nine men and a woman amid a report that a major indoor shopping mall near the northwestern city of Manchester might have been the target of a bombing plot.

The raids by about 400 anti-terrorism officers followed by just three days a meeting between Prime Minister Tony Blair and President Bush in which the British leader promised to stand firm with Washington in its declared war on terrorism and the war in Iraq.

Seven of the arrests were in the Manchester area, and all of those detained across Britain were believed to be of Iraqi Kurdish or North African origin, said a statement by Assistant Chief Constable David Whatton of the Greater Manchester police.

An apartment over a kebab shop in a university neighborhood of Manchester was among the sites raided. Neighbors, who said the raids began at 3:30 a.m., said they awoke to find police cordoning off the apartments of suspects.

Sky Television, citing unnamed sources, said the alleged plotters were suspected of targeting the country’s largest indoor shopping center, Trafford Center, which is just outside Manchester. Whatton said he would not confirm or deny any targets.

Whatton said the arrests were part of an operation that had been going on for some time, “set against the background of an increased threat level across the country.”

On March 30, police apprehended nine men in London and southeastern England in a series of anti-terrorism raids. Those actions resulted in the confiscation of half a ton of ammonium nitrate from a London storage site.

Authorities said the substance might have been intended for the production of a massive bomb, such as the one used in the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, which killed 168 people.

Britain has been on a heightened terrorism alert, including warnings posted at public transit hubs asking riders to be vigilant for any suspicious behavior or bags that appear to be unattended.

Under Britain’s Terrorism Act of 2000, suspects can be held for up to 14 days without charges.