[JURIST] Two men involved in an alleged plot to blow up transatlantic planes [JURIST report] leaving a London airport pleaded guilty to lesser conspiracy charges Monday in London's Woolwich Crown Court [official website]. Arafat Waheed Khan and Waheed Zaman [Global Security backgrounders] pleaded guilty to conspiracy to create a public nuisance, but denied that they planned to kill anyone by blowing up aircraft. Last week, three other men allegedly involved in the plot, Abdulla Ahmed Ali, Assad Sarwar, and Tanvir Hussain [GlobalSecurity profiles], admitted that they planned to set off bombs but insisted that their only intention was to create a media stir to promote an anti-western film they planned to make. They and two other men, Ibrahim Savant and Umar Islam [GlobalSecurity profiles], also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to create a public nuisance by releasing videos about planned suicide attacks. The plot's discovery led to a widespread increase in airport security measures, including a ban on bringing liquids or gels onto planes. AP has more.

A total of 24 men were arrested during UK raids in August 2006, and police charged 11 suspects [JURIST report] under the Terrorism Act 2006 and Terrorism Act 2000 [texts]: eight with conspiracy to commit murder and with preparing acts of terrorism, one with possession of articles useful to a person preparing an act of terrorism, and two with failing to disclose information of material assistance in preventing an act of terrorism. One detainee was released, police had previously released another without charge [JURIST report] and arrested an additional suspect [JURIST report]. Nineteen of the named suspects [list] had their assets frozen by the Bank of England [corporate website].