A former bodyguard of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was granted asylum in Britain and later obtained British citizenship before allegedly helping plan attacks on Jewish targets in Europe ahead of the second anniversary of the October 7 massacre, The Sunday Times reported Saturday.
The man, who is also the son of a senior Hamas figure, is identified throughout the report only as “Mr. X” because his name cannot be published for legal reasons. According to security sources and evidence obtained by the newspaper, X had been part of Haniyeh’s security detail since 2006, when Hamas won Palestinian legislative elections and later seized control of the Gaza Strip.
The report said that between 2009 and 2012, X also passed through Egypt and was arrested there after being linked to the operation of a tunnel used to smuggle weapons and gold into Gaza. He left Gaza in 2012. His movements afterward remain unclear until his arrival in Britain.
Despite his known background, the report said, X applied for refugee status in 2015 and was granted permission by the British Home Office to remain in the country. After settling there with his wife and children, he later obtained British citizenship.
The Sunday Times reported that X worked under the cover of an IT consultant and lived in the suburbs of a major English city.
He changed his name several times and outwardly maintained the appearance of an ordinary life, taking part in anti-Israel demonstrations, reviewing businesses online and setting up companies.
He was arrested in London last November after Mossad and German intelligence services discovered that he was allegedly involved in plans to target Jewish community centers, Israeli diplomats and pro-Israel demonstrations in Germany or Austria.
According to the report, a joint operation involving Germany, Austria, Denmark and Britain led to the arrests of seven suspects. An AK-47 assault rifle and ammunition were among the weapons seized.
In Germany, X is accused of smuggling weapons, including handguns and ammunition, to a storage site in Vienna.
The report said investigators also found a video showing him masked and armed beside a Hamas flag, in which he allegedly described the planned attack as an “act of revenge” on behalf of Hamas’ military wing.
A law enforcement source quoted by The Sunday Times described him as a “vital” figure in the alleged plot, but provided no further details.
If convicted, X is expected to serve a prison sentence in Britain before facing extradition to Germany.
One source quoted in the report described him as a “senior asset” for Hamas and said he used his British passport to travel to Turkey and Qatar, countries that have hosted senior Hamas officials and served as important centers for the group’s activity.
An indictment first obtained by Germany’s Bild newspaper alleges that in July 2025, X transported five handguns, ammunition, wool hats and gloves from Berlin to Vienna.
A month later, he allegedly received 100 rounds of ammunition. Several weeks after that, one of his alleged associates obtained a Yugoslav-made Kalashnikov rifle, eight handguns and 600 rounds of ammunition.
Pro-Palestinian protesters demonstrate in London, 2025
(Photo: REUTERS/Jack Taylor)
At one of the locations raided by police, investigators found the video recorded by X, which the report said appeared to have been filmed in Vienna. In the recording, he said the attack would mark the second anniversary of October 7, helping German authorities determine the suspected motive and timing of the alleged plot.
The report said two of those arrested were German citizens, three were Lebanese, one was Bulgarian and another was a Danish citizen.
It remains unclear whether X intended to participate directly in the attack, which investigators suspect was planned for Berlin or Vienna.
The Sunday Times did not detail exactly how the alleged plans were thwarted. It reported, however, that one of the suspects had been an “asset” for German intelligence who later “went rogue” and concealed information about the extent of his role. No further details about that intelligence asset were published.
Haniyeh was killed in Tehran in late July 2024, hours after attending the inauguration of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.
Although initial reports suggested a missile had struck the building where he was staying, The New York Times later reported that he was killed by an explosive device that had been secretly smuggled into and planted weeks earlier at the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-run guesthouse where he was staying.
According to that report, the bomb was detonated remotely after confirmation that Haniyeh was inside the room.