A 25-year-old dual UK-Iranian national has been arrested in London on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts in connection with the recent security incident at RAF Fairford, counter-terrorism police have announced.
The suspect was detained in Westminster, where officers have also searched two properties. Meanwhile, five other men in their twenties who were arrested near the Gloucestershire airbase on Sunday remain out on police bail. Those five individuals are all British nationals from London.
Vicki Evans, the senior national coordinator for counter-terror policing, stated that investigators are exploring "all possible angles – including foreign state involvement" as they continue to look into the incident. Evans described the ongoing investigation in Gloucestershire as "hugely complex" and noted that specialist teams are currently interrogating multiple lines of inquiry. Police also corrected an earlier update, clarifying that the arrested dual national is 25 rather than 27, and that no second man had been questioned under caution as previously stated.
The investigation stems from an incident in the early hours of Sunday morning, when "three suspicious vehicles" were reported heading toward the base, which is operated by the US Air Force (USAF). The situation prompted a major security response. One of the five men initially arrested had called 999 himself about an hour before a local farmer alerted police to a large group of masked men near the vehicles.
Subsequent searches of the vans near the site uncovered a quantity of petrol, but police confirmed that no explosive devices were found. The five men, aged between 23 and 25, were initially arrested on suspicion of explosives offenses and later on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act. They were released on bail on Monday in what police described as an investigative decision grounded in strategy and experience. Four of those suspects live in Westminster and one in Camden, leading to searches of their homes.
The incident has drawn significant attention from political figures. Prime Minister Andy Burnham stated on Wednesday that there are "strong indications" that Iran played a role in the incident, though Tehran has strongly denied any involvement. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio also commented on Monday, stating that "the hands of a foreign actor" were clearly involved. RAF Fairford has served as a forward operating location for the USAF for decades. In recent months, US bombers have used the base to launch missions in the Middle East following UK approval for defensive strikes on Iran.
