LONDON, May 24 (UPI) -- Anti-terror police arrested several people in raids across England Wednesday, apparently in connection with insurgent attacks in Iraq.
Some 500 officers were involved in 18 separate raids in Manchester, the West Midlands, Cleveland, London and Merseyside. Nine individuals were originally arrested; two were released and the remaining seven taken into custody. The raids, involving five regional police forces, are expected to continue throughout the day.
The BBC reported that the arrests were believed to be connected to the activities of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group in facilitating or conducting terrorism in Iraq, though this was not yet confirmed.
One of the properties raided was the Birmingham office of the Sanabel Relief Agency, which was recently designated by the United States as being connected to the Libyan group.
The organization is suspected of loose links to al-Qaida and is opposed to the regime of Libyan Leader Colonel Moammar Gadhafi.
The raids, jointly organized with MI5, Britain's domestic intelligence agency, followed an extensive investigation lasting several months.
A spokeswoman for Greater Manchester Police, the force leading the operation, confirmed that an "extensive operation targeting individuals suspected of facilitating terrorism abroad" was under way. However she would not confirm the exact nature of the alleged offences.
