UK believes Iran played part in RAF Fairford incident

The British government believes Iran played a part in an incident near RAF Fairford, an air base used by U.S. bombers flying to the Middle East, Prime Minister Andy Burnham said Wednesday. Iran has denied any involvement, and five men arrested near the base have been released on bail.

“There are strong indications that Iran played a part in what happened over the weekend at RAF Fairford,” Burnham told the BBC. He gave no details, saying the matter remained “an ongoing, complex and serious police investigation” and that British authorities were working closely with the United States.

Police arrested the five men early Sunday after receiving a report of three suspicious vehicles in Whelford, a village directly east of the base. All are British nationals aged 23 to 25; four live in Westminster and one in Camden, according to the BBC. The BBC reported that one of the men had called the emergency number 999 himself before the arrests.

The men were arrested on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act and released on bail the following day. Police described the release as an “investigative decision” grounded in experience and strategy. Searches of their homes are complete, the BBC reported.

Counterterrorism police found no explosive devices in searches of the vehicles. They found fuel and large, mostly empty plastic drums, CBS News reported. The BBC described the fuel as a quantity of petrol found during searches of the vans.

President Donald Trump questioned the decision to grant bail. “I would have said, ‘don’t let them have bail’,” he said at the White House on Monday. “I’m surprised that they released them. I wouldn’t have done that.” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the incident “clearly involves the hands of a foreign actor.”

Burnham said the suspects faced the “strictest possible bail conditions” and that authorities had the matter under the “strongest grip and closest control.” He said British officials had spoken with their U.S. counterparts throughout the week and that he had “complete confidence” in British security services.

Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, who heads the Metropolitan Police’s counterterrorism unit, said Monday that the men remained under investigation and would be monitored closely. He said the incident could involve proxies or people working for a foreign state “knowingly or unknowingly.”

RAF Fairford has served as a U.S. Air Force forward operating location for decades. In recent months, U.S. bombers have departed from the base for the Middle East after Britain approved its use for what the government called defensive strikes on Iran, the BBC reported.

Iran said in July that any base used for aggression against its territory would be a legitimate target. Its embassy in London has since said it “categorically rejects and strongly condemns” what it called “unfounded and malicious speculations” linking Iran to the Fairford incident.