12 arrested in major UK anti-terror swoop

LONDON - Twelve men have been arrested in a major national counter-terrorism operation, West Midlands Police said Monday.

The men - five from Cardiff, four from Stoke-on-Trent and three from London - were detained on suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of an act of terrorism in the UK, the Daily Express reports.

The suspects are aged between 17 and 28, and were detained by unarmed officers at approximately 5 a.m. on Monday.

West Midlands Police said: “All were arrested at or near their home addresses, with the exception of one suspect from Stoke who was at a domestic property in Birmingham.

It added: “Searches are now being conducted at the home addresses, plus the address in Birmingham and another residence in London.”

The operation is being led by Metropolitan Police Deputy Assistant Commissioner Stuart Osborne, the Senior National Co-ordinator Terrorist Investigations, and is being coordinated from the West Midlands Counter-Terrorism Unit. (ANI)