3 British men go on trial over alleged terror plot

LONDON — Three men have gone on trial in London accused of plotting a bombing campaign that prosecutors say could have been deadlier than the 2005 transit attacks.

Prosecutors say 27-year-olds Irfan Khalid and Ashik Ali, and 31-year-old Irfan Naseer, were part of a plot to mount a terrorist attack “on a scale potentially greater than the London bombings in July 2005.” That attack killed 52 commuters.

The suspects, all British Muslims, were arrested in September 2011 in the central English city of Birmingham. All three are charged with preparing for terrorism by plotting a bombing campaign, recruiting others and fundraising. Khalid and Naseer also are accused of traveling to Pakistan for terrorism training.

They have pleaded not guilty. The trial opened Monday.