Galway imam seeks prison visit after bomb plot convictions

Ibrahim Noonan, the imam of the Maryam Mosque in Galway, has stated he intends to visit the three men convicted of plotting to bomb the building to ask them directly why they carried out the plan. The three defendants were sentenced last week to a combined total of 26 years in prison for attempting to engage in terrorist activity.

Judge Caroline Biggs of the Special Criminal Court handed down the individual sentences. Garret Pollock, 36, of County Down, was deemed the most culpable and received 10.5 years, with the final year suspended. Darren Gorman, 34, of Portlaoise, and Karolis Peckauskas, 39, a Lithuanian national from Drogheda, each received eight years, also with the final year suspended.

The plot was foiled when gardaí conducted random drug searches and discovered explosive materials and weapons in a car occupied by Pollock and Peckauskas. Evidence linked to a group calling itself the Irish Defence Army was also found. The men are charged with attempting to set fire to the mosque between November 4 and 5, 2025, an offense aggravated by hatred.

Noonan, 62, said he wants to meet the men to understand their purpose. He plans to speak to the two Irish men first, telling them that Ireland has a deep history of being oppressed for religion and being colonized. "I’d like to visit them in prison and ask them: 'Why? Why did you do this?'" Noonan said. He added that he hopes to show them who the Muslim community really is.

The imam believes he may have seen the men before the arrest. He recalled seeing them monitoring the mosque from a white van for weeks prior to the planned strike. "I actually saw them and didn’t realise who they were," he said. Noonan noted that he now experiences anxiety whenever he sees a white van, a physical reaction to the memory of that time.

This week marks the first anniversary of the planned attack. Noonan described the intended goal as causing severe damage or killing people. Up to 200 people, including children, were praying in the mosque on the Friday morning the attackers planned to strike. The incident has left the local Ahmadiyya Muslim community traumatized.

Muhammad Anwar Malik, national president of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Association Ireland, expressed shock at the attack. He has lived in Ireland for 26 years and never felt unsafe before. "I was gobsmacked when I heard this," Malik said. He noted that the community is active and engaging with neighbors, which made the threat more surprising.

Arsalan Shahid, press secretary for the association, called the incident disturbing and alarming for such a welcoming country. Malik acknowledged that while fear does not vanish with a prison sentence, Irish people are generally open-hearted due to their own experiences with prejudice. However, he noted that Islamophobia is rising and a small part of society has been radicalized by far-right figures.

Noonan reported that mosque attendance dropped immediately after the arrests because people were scared. Attendance has since increased, though fewer people attend early-morning prayers despite extra security measures. Noonan said his anger toward the three men has lessened over time.

"I think my anger towards them is much less now," Noonan said. He expressed hope that the men were genuine in their apologies for planning to cause so much harm. The mosque, opened in 2014, is named after Mary, the mother of Jesus, and serves about 200 of the 500 to 600 Ahmadis living in Ireland.