A former bodyguard to Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh allegedly secured asylum and British citizenship before becoming involved in plans for a terrorist attack targeting Jewish people in Europe.
The man, known as Mr X and protected from identification for legal reasons, was reportedly granted refugee status in the UK in 2015. This came despite allegations that he had served in Haniyeh’s personal security detail while Haniyeh was Hamas’s leader in Gaza.
Egyptian authorities had also allegedly detained him for supervising a tunnel used to smuggle guns and gold into Gaza.
Mr X, a married man in his forties, now faces extradition to Germany over accusations that he organised a terror plot targeting Israeli diplomats, pro-Israel demonstrations and Jewish communities in Germany or Austria in October 2025.
The attacks were allegedly planned to take place around the second anniversary of the October 7 attacks, in which about 1,200 people were killed.
He is also due to stand trial in the UK in a separate criminal case. If convicted, he will serve a prison sentence before being extradited to Germany to face allegations that he procured weapons for Hamas.
National Crime Agency officers arrested the alleged former Hamas bodyguard in central London last November after intelligence about the suspected plot was passed to Mossad, as well as German intelligence and security agencies.
German officials worked with international partners, including the UK, to arrest seven suspects and recover weapons, among them an AK-47 rifle.
Hamas fighters pictured in Gaza. The ex-bodyguard to the leader of Hamas allegedly secured UK asylum and citizenship before plotting a terror attack against Jewish people in Europe
An indictment obtained first by German newspaper Bild alleges that Mr X, who remains in custody in Britain, transported weapons to a storage facility in Vienna.
The alleged former bodyguard also reportedly recorded a video showing him armed and masked in front of a Hamas flag. In the clip, he allegedly said the planned attack was retaliation on behalf of the Ezzidine al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s military wing.
According to the indictment, he transported five pistols, ammunition, woollen hats, neck warmers and gloves from Berlin last July before leaving them at a rented storage facility in Vienna.
A law enforcement source described Mr X as an “essential” figure in the alleged plot, according to The Sunday Times.
He cannot be named despite suggestions that the alleged plans ranked among the most serious terror threats in Germany’s recent history. His lawyer argued that identifying him could prejudice a separate criminal case due to be heard in the UK.
Sources say Mr X first joined Haniyeh’s security team around the time Hamas secured a decisive victory in Palestine’s legislative elections.
Haniyeh remained in power in Gaza for the decade after Hamas defeated its rival Fatah in a civil war and seized control of the strip.
At some point between 2009 and 2012, Mr X was allegedly detained by Egyptian officials over his role in operating a tunnel used to smuggle weapons.
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He left Gaza in 2012 and reached Britain by 2015, joining other Hamas figures and members of the group’s predecessor, the Muslim Brotherhood.
The Home Office, then led by Theresa May, granted the alleged former Hamas security official asylum. It remains unclear how much officials knew about his alleged involvement in the group’s inner workings.
He was later granted British citizenship and moved with his wife and children into a suburban home near an English city.
The father has used two properties in the same English city in recent years but does not own either of them.
Mr X changed his name at least once, according to sources, with Companies House records showing UK entities incorporated under several identities.
He left positive reviews for local businesses under a Google Maps account as recently as two years ago – all while attending protests outside the Israeli embassy.
Online pictures show him standing alongside Haniyeh, including one where he escorts the Hamas leader in Gaza through a throng of supporters holding Kalashnikovs.
Haniyeh was assassinated by Mossad in Tehran in July 2024, just months after the October 7 attacks.
As a vocal spokesperson and intermediary for Hamas on the world stage, Haniyeh had described the October 7 attacks as ‘an earthquake that struck the heart of the Zionist entity’ and vowed to continue the fight to ‘liberate… all our land’.
But for years, the ‘overall leader’ of Hamas had lived a life of luxury outside of Gaza, drawing the ire of many Gazans who felt he had become ‘out of touch’ after rising to the top of Hamas’ political structure in its early years in power.
As he decried poverty in the beleaguered Gaza Strip, Haniyeh became the wealthiest of Hamas’ leaders, jetting between five-star hotels in Doha and Istanbul while Hamas siphoned millions in international aid for military use.
Mr X, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was allegedly awarded refugee status despite working in the security detail of Ismail Haniyeh, then Hamas leader in Gaza, pictured in 2021
Police found Mr X’s pre-recorded video while raiding a property and it is believed the clip was filmed in Vienna.
Seven others were last year arrested over the alleged planned attack including two German citizens, one Dane, one Bulgarian and three Lebanese suspects.
A German intelligence asset, who allegedly went rogue, is alleged to have been a co-conspirator of the plotted terror attack.
Our News Outlet has approached the Home Office for comment.
