An alleged terrorist cell with links to al-Qaeda discussed blowing up London's Ministry of Sound nightclub a court has heard.

The group of seven men allegedly plotted to blow up the club in Elephant & Castle using homemade bombs fashioned from ammonium nitrate
fertiliser and aluminium powder, as well
as target utility companies.

The Old Bailey was played secret security recordings in which Jawad Akbar, 22, of Crawley, West Sussex, is heard discussing with Omar Khyam, 24, also of Crawley, to blow up Ministry of Sound because they considered the club a soft target.

Ministry of Sound's main dancefloor

Recording

The prosecution played a recording to the jury which was said to have been made at Akbar's home in Uxbridge, west London, on 22 February 2004.

Jawad Akbar: "What about easy stuff where you don't need no experience and nothing and you could get a job, yeah, like for example the biggest nightclub in central London where no-one can even turn round and say "oh they were
innocent" those slags dancing around?

The explosion in the clubs, yeah, that's fine, Bro, that's not a problem...to get them into the Ministry of Sound really isn't difficult Omar Khyam Discuss this story in DJmag.com's forum

"If you went for the social structure where every Tom, Dick and Harry goes on a Saturday night, yeah, that would be crazy."

Omar Khyam: "If you get a job in a bar, yeah, or a club, say the Ministry of Sound, what are you planning to do there then?"

Jawad Akbar: "Blow the whole thing up."

Omar Khyam: "That's what I'm saying."

Jawad Akbar: "I think the club thing you could do, but the gas would be much harder. There's people who
even get in with their searching stuff
but it's only bouncers that search you."

Omar Khyam: "The explosion in the clubs, yeah, that's fine, Bro, that's not a problem. The training for that is available. To get them into the Ministry of Sound really isn't difficult."

Endanger Life

Mr Akbar, Mr Khyamand his brother Shujah Mahmood, 19, and Waheed Mahmood, 34, both of Crawley, Salahuddin Amin, 31, of Luton, Beds, Anthony Garcia, 23, of Ilford, east London, and Nabeel Hussain, 21, of Horley, Surrey, deny conspiring to cause explosions likely to endanger life between 1 January, 2003 and 31 March, 2004.

Mr Khyam, Mr Garcia and Mr Hussain also deny a charge under the Terrorism Act of possessing 600kg of ammonium nitrate fertiliser for terrorism.

Mr Khyam and Shujah Mahmood further deny possessing aluminium powder for terrorism.

They were arrested on March 30, 2004, after the fertiliser was found stored in a west London depot.

Ministry of Sound refused to comment.