Six charged in alleged military kidnap plot

Story Highlights

• NEW: Six charged in alleged plot to kidnap and kill British soldier
• Five men appear before Magistrates Court on Friday, the sixth on Saturday
• Three other men released earlier without charge

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LONDON, England (CNN) -- Six men have been charged under British anti-terrorism laws, related to an alleged kidnap plot, British police said.

One of the six, 36-year-old Parviz Khan, is charged with plotting to kidnap and kill a member of the British Armed Forces, West Midlands police said.

Four other men -- Mohammed Irfan, 30, Zahoor Iqbal, 29, Hamid Elasmar, 43, and Amjad Mahmood, 31 -- are charged with various offenses under the Terrorism Acts of 2000 and 2006.

All five appeared before the Westminster Magistrates Court on Friday, police said.

The sixth man, Basiru Gassama, 29, was charged with one offense under the Terrorism Act of 2000. He appeared before the Magistrates Court on Saturday.

The men were among nine, initially arrested in the Birmingham area last week. Three of the men were released earlier without charges.

Police said the plot was foiled by a series of raids by West Midlands police throughout central England on January 31 in what the Home Office called a "major counterterrorism operation."