Two men charged with plotting Christmas terror attack

They were among four suspects apprehended in Sheffield and Chesterfield

Two men have been charged with terrorism offences by police who had been investigating a suspected Christmas terror plot.

Farhad Salah, 22, from Sheffield, and Andi Sami Star, 31, from Chesterfield, were among four men arrested in Derbyshire and South Yorkshire on 19 December.

They have been charged with engaging in the preparation of an act of terrorism, West Yorkshire Police said.

The pair are to appear by video-link before London's Westminster Magistrates' Court on Friday.

West Yorkshire Police said a 36-year-old man from Burngreave in Sheffield remains in custody, while a 41-year-old from Meersbrook in Sheffield was released on Saturday.

The police were originally given until Christmas Day to decide whether to charge the four men, but a court approved an extension of that deadline until 1 January.

The arrests followed an investigation led by Counter Terrorism Policing North East, which was backed by Derbyshire Constabulary and South Yorkshire Police.

During the arrests, an army bomb disposal unit carried out a controlled explosion to "safely dispose of material" found at one of the properties.