THE judge in the trial of eight men accused of a terrorist conspiracy to blow up passenger planes has said he will accept a majority verdict.

Four men from Waltham Forest and four others are standing trial at the Old Bailey accused of a plotting to smuggle bombs on to transatlantic flights disguised as soft drinks.

Mr Justice Henriques has today (Friday) told jurors he will accept a majority verdict of at least 10 to two.

The jury started its deliberations 11 days ago.

The accused are: Abdulla Ahmed Ali, 28, Waheed Zaman, 25 and Arafat Waheed Khan, 28, all of Walthamstow; Tanvir Hussain, 28, of Leyton; Assad Sarwar, 29, of High Wycombe; Umar Islam, 31, of Plaistow; Ibrahim Savant, 28, of Stoke Newington; and Donald Stewart-Whyte, 23, of High Wycombe.

They all deny the charges.