It is believed the plot was aimed at getting revenge for the death of Saffie Roussos (pictured), the youngest of the 22 killed in the bombing at an Ariana Grande concert in 2017

An 'anti-Islamic' terror suspect was plotting to blow up a mosque to avenge the killing of an eight-year-old girl in the Manchester Arena bombing, a court has heard.

Steven Bishop, 40, is accused of tampering with fireworks in a bid to create a bomb which he aimed to set off with a detonator he bought on the dark web.

It is believed the plot was aimed at getting revenge for the death of Saffie Roussos, the youngest of the 22 killed in the IS bombing at an Ariana Grande concert in 2017.

Bishop, from Thornton Heath, south London, appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Tuesday and is set to next appear at the Old Bailey.

He is expected to deny the charge of preparing for a terrorism act.

Saffie, from Leyland, Lancashire, had attended the concert on May 22, 2017, with her mother Lisa, 48, and her sister Ashlee Bromwich, 24.

She was killed when suicide bomber Salman Abedi detonated his device. Her mother and sister both suffered serious injuries.

After the attack Saffie's mother Lisa awoke from a coma to be told of her daughter's death.

In the weeks that followed Abedi's suicide attack the family's chip shop business became a sea of floral tributes to the little girl.

However the family has since moved away from their home and chip shop The Plaice on Hough Lane, in Leyland, Lancashire, where Saffie played a 'massive part'.