Three men, 35, 36 and 50, are charged with terror offences after raids across Greater Manchester

Three men have been charged with terror offences following a string of raids across Greater Manchester, police have confirmed.

Walid Saadaoui, 36, and Amar Hussein, 50, have been charged with preparation of terrorist acts, contrary to section 5(1)(b) of the Terrorism Act 2006. 

Bilel Saadaoui, 35, has been charged with failure to disclose information about an act of terrorism. 

All three have been remanded in custody and are scheduled to appear before Westminster Magistrates Court tomorrow.

The raids were carried out last Wednesday as part of a series of coordinated strikes at four addresses in Wigan and Bolton.

A number of police cordons were put in place across the addresses and remained in place for a number of days. Local officers were also tasked with patrolling the affected areas.

Greater Manchester Police confirmed today that all the cordons have been lifted and have thanked the impacted communities for their 'patience and co-operation'.

Newly re-elected Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham last week described the raids as a 'preventative' measure.

Asked about the raids, he told BBC Radio Manchester: 'Obviously people will read that and it's a worrying development, but on the other hand, we have our police force, GMP, taking action to apprehend people.

'I can't really say more than that.

'This has been a preventative move.

'Obviously we will be able to say more in due course.'

Assistant Chief Constable Rob Potts, who holds responsibility for counter terrorism policing in the north west, said last Wednesday: 'This evening we have executed a number of planned warrants as part of an ongoing counter terrorism investigation.

'Three men have been taken into custody for questioning and scenes remain in place as we conduct further enquiries.

'Today's activity has been the culmination of much detailed planning and we have put measures in place to minimise disruption to local residents as much as possible.

'I understand that any time arrests of this nature are made it will cause concerns and people will naturally have questions.

'Although we can't go into specific details of the investigation at this stage, I want to reassure members of the public that we do not currently believe there to be any wider threat linked to today's activity.

'Further detail will be released where appropriate as the investigation progresses.'

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.