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Couple who plotted terror attack in London for 7/7 bombings 10th anniversary jailed for life

Islamic extremist Mohammed Rehman and his wife Sana Ahmed Khan were found guilty of preparing an act of terrorism at the Old Bailey

Mohammed Rehman, who is being sentanced at the Old Bailey on December 29, 2015, charged with preparing for acts of terrorism

Jailed: Mohammed Rehman was found guilty at the Old Bailey yesterday

A wannabe suicide bomber has been jailed for life after plotting an Islamic State terror attack in London with his secret wife.

The couple - Mohammed Rehman, 25, and 24-year-old Sana Ahmed Khan - were found guilty of preparing an act of terrorism at the Old Bailey yesterday.

And today Rehman was jailed for life with a minimum of 27 years behind bars.

His then-wife Khan has also been jailed for life, with a minimum of 25 years behind bars.

The court heard how Rehman used his bedroom as a bomb factory filled with deadly chemicals and explosives recipes, and even took to Twitter for help picking his targets.

Meanwhile his wife funded his Jihadi plot, using payday loans to buy 11kg of fertiliser to make into explosives.

Prosecutor Tony Badenoch QC told the court today that Rehman and Khan were behind "an advanced plot to manufacture and detonate a substantial explosive device in a crowded and confined public space".

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He added: "Mohammed Rehman was an enthusiastic and vocal supporter of violent extremist Islamist ideology who keenly applied himself to making bombs and gathering all the necessary material to do just that.

"He talked freely about martyrdom on the Internet, his preparations were almost complete and his intentions were clear.

"But for the intervention of the counter terrorism officers at the end of May, this plot would have been carried out."

He said the couple, who wed in secret in a traditional Islamic ceremony but have now divorced, idolised 7/7 bomber Shehzad Tanweer and were plotting an attack in July this year to mark the tenth anniversary of the atrocity.

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Mr Badenoch said the explosives recovered from Rehman's home were enough for a "catastrophic attack on London", and called for hefty sentences to deter others from plotting terrorist acts.

PA Sana Ahmed Khan, who is being sentanced at the Old Bailey on December 29, 2015, charged with preparing for acts of terrorism

Support: Ahmed Khan helped her secret husband with payday loans

Zafar Ali QC, defending, said: "There's something of Walter Mitty about Mohammed Rehman, certainly as evidenced in his postings on his Twitter account.

"He both boasted and lied in this accounts, he claimed his house was rigged to blow and he possessed an explosive vest - both statements were of course untrue as were many of his other claims."

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But the couple's mitigation to the judge lasted less than ten minutes as they accepted lengthy jail sentences were inevitable.

Rehman, using the Twitter nickname Silent Bomber and a profile picture of Jihadi John, called Tanweer his "beloved predecessor" and boasted online: "I make explosives for a living".

PA A 'Jihadi John-style' hunting knife that was uncovered in the Reading home of Mohammed Rehman, as he and his wife Sana Ahmed Khan have been found guilty of planning a massive terror attack on London to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the July 7 atrocity

Found: A 'Jihadi John-style' hunting knife that was uncovered in the Reading home of Mohammed Rehman

As their plans for terrorism gathered pace, Rehman asked his Twitter followers for help selecting a target.

He wrote: "Westfield shopping centre or London Underground? Any advice would be greatly appreciated".

The couple even test fired one of their bombs in Rehman's back garden, and experts believe they were only a detonator short of making the deadly plot a reality.

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After his arrest, Rehman claimed he was only pretending to be a "Jihadi warrior" and the couple then turned on each other during a trial at the Old Bailey, accusing each other of being the real Islamic extremist.

But a jury yesterday found both Rehman and Khan guilty of planning a terrorist attack, while Rehman was also found guilty of possessing chemicals for use in terrorism.

During the trial, Rehman's own brother called him as a "lowlife idiot" drug addict who rarely washed, drank heavily, and spent most of his time playing video games.

PA Pieces of plastic and circuit board that were shown to the jury in the case of Mohammed Rehman and his wife Sana Ahmed Khan, who have been found guilty of planning a massive terror attack on London to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the July 7 atrocity

Terror plot: Pieces of plastic and circuit board that were shown to the jury in the case of Mohammed Rehman and his wife Sana Ahmed Khan

His father, Zia Rehman, 53, a bus driver, admitted his son was "just in his own world" who walked out on an arranged marriage in Pakistan when his wife was four months pregnant.

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Rehman had pledged allegiance to Islamic State leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, and had a Jihadi John style hunting knife in his bedroom alongside stacks of chemicals and bomb recipes.

When police swooped on Rehman's family home, in Radstock Road, Reading, just over a month before the tenth anniversary of 7/7, they uncovered a bomb factory in his bedroom.

Mohammed Rehman tests home-made 'bomb' in his back garden

Tests: Mohammed Rehman tests home-made 'bomb' in his back garden

He had 10kgs of Urea Nitrate explosives, Tornado nitro fuel, instruction videos for making bombs, and a 'Royal Flush' of pro-ISIS propaganda videos.

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Evidence showed Khan, who has a degree in English from the University of Greenwich, in southeast London, had been funding the bomb factory with her wages and by taking out payday loans.

Mr Ali told the court Rehman's family have now disowned him.

Neither Rehman or Khan gave evidence in their own defence.