Police believe they may have thwarted a Christmas terror attack plot with the arrest of four men, it was reported.
The men were arrested on suspicion of plotting an Islamist terror attack as armed police carried out a series of dramatic pre-dawn raids and a bomb squad inspected a residence over fears it contained explosives.
Anti-terror police worked with MI5 as they detained three men aged 22, 36 and 41, at different addresses in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, while a 31-year-old man was arrested in Chesterfield, Derbyshire.
The arrests - on the one-year anniversary of the Berlin Christmas market attack - come after the terror group ISIS urged its supporters to kill innocent people at Christmas markets and other tourist attractions in Europe and the US.
Neighbours of a home being searched in Chesterfield were evacuated as a precaution as the Army's bomb squad joined the investigation and was seen removing "packages".
In Sheffield, residents reported being jolted awake by an "explosion" as officers stormed a home, with police later assuring locals that the loud bang was part of a tactic they used when they entered the property.
It was revealed after Tuesday's raids that police believe they may have disrupted a Christmas terror plot, with the timing of the raids suggested an attack was "nearing fruition", Sky News reported.
An unnamed source said: "We won't know exactly what we've got until we have finished searches of the suspects' properties and electronic devices.
"But the timing of the raids may be significant and the use of the bomb squad clearly shows what police thought they might find behind the door."
Britain's Christmas markets have increased security this year following last year's attack in Berlin, with the perimeter of the market in Birmingham protected by concrete bollards and metal gates.
The four men who were detained are being questioned at a police station in West Yorkshire, while four properties in Sheffield and another in Chesterfield are being searched.
The Army's bomb disposal unit attended a property in King Street North in Chesterfield, where neighbouring homes were evacuated and children at two nearby schools were kept inside as a precaution.
Witness Jake Fox, 24, said: "We were evacuated at about 9.30pm and the police told us to go to Chesterfield stadium. They wouldn't give us any information." His brother Simon, 22, added: "We have seen army, police from all over, we have seen a couple of packages being removed by the bomb disposal unit.
"You just don't expect this to happen in such a small town."
A woman who lives nearby said: "I was watching telly and saw police knocking on a neighbour's door. The next minute they were banging on my door and shouted 'you have 10 minutes to get out, we're evacuating'.
"I was really panicking."
She said a family who "kept to themselves" lived at the home. A police statement said: "The Army's Bomb Disposal Unit is currently attending the address in Chesterfield.
"As a precautionary measure and in the interest of public safety, the immediate area has been cordoned off and local residents evacuated while a thorough search is carried out."
Derbyshire Constabulary Assistant Chief Constable Bill McWilliam said: "We of course understand that police activity of this nature can be unsettling. However, please be reassured; the arrest we wanted to make has been made.
"Our advice remains to be vigilant, which is not different to our day-to-day advice in the current climate, but continue to go about your business as usual." Residents in Shirebrook Road, Sheffield, said they heard what sounded like an "explosion" at around 5.30am as police swarmed the property.
Police later said: "The public may have heard a loud bang at the time as police entered one of the properties, but it was not an explosion. It was part of the method to gain entry to the property in Meersbrook."
More officers arrived throughout the morning as the home was searched. A next-door-neighbour said he knew who lived next door and they were "all nice lads".
The young male, who did not wish to be named, said: "I heard a big bang, which turned out to be the charge they used to open the door. "I then went to my housemate and we were watching the whole thing from out the window, we saw various armed special forces and the counter terrorism unit coming in and out and then the guy came out.
"I don't know the guys from next door very well but we have had fires in the past and they have come down, they seemed like nice lads, it's a shame really. I am shocked." Retired Joan Miller, 63, who lives opposite the run-down house, said she looked out of her window to see many plain-clothed armed officers in the street.
Ms Miller said: "It was a very loud bang. It shook the house. I pulled the curtains and saw lots of armed men in the street, so I kept watching because that was quite extraordinary."
She said the officers shouted "very abruptly" for people to stay in their homes.
Ms Miller and others in the street said they did not know who lived in the house, which is in a dilapidated state. Officers also sealed off the Fatima Community Centre in Brunswick Road, Sheffield, where the main door to the building was on the floor in pieces. A large number of police vehicles were parked outside the two-storey building and officers were guarding the main entrance, which was cordoned off with tape.
A man who lives nearby said he was woken at 6am by three explosions in quick succession. He said he thought one of the bangs came from the community centre but the others sounded like they came from nearby flats. The man said he looked out to see at least six police officers with rifles in camouflage and full body armour.
He said: "They were in full kit with the guns and everything. We're on the front line here."
Mirror
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