According to Reuters and the BBC, British counter-terrorism police are investigating a suspicious plot involving the RAF Fairford base. On October 1st local time, they announced that a person of dual British-Iranian citizenship has been arrested, suspected of preparing to carry out terrorist activities.
This 25-year-old man was arrested in Westminster, London, and two properties in the area have been searched.
According to reports by the BBC, the police initially stated that the man was 27 years old, and said that another man was questioned after being warned. However, subsequent updates revealed that this was not the case.
British National Senior Anti-Terrorism Coordinator Vicki Evans said in a statement, "The investigation into the events in Gloucester County, England is extremely complex. Our professional team is investigating multiple leads. As we have stated, we are examining all possibilities, including potential foreign involvement."
On the early morning of September 27th, the police received a report indicating that three suspicious vehicles were present in the village of Welford, Gloucestershire, to the east of the base. As a result, the five men were arrested immediately.
All five are British citizens, aged between 23 and 25. Four of them live in Westminster, and one lives in Camden. The five suspects were subsequently granted bail.
British Prime Minister Barnier stated on September 30, "There are strong indications that Iran is involved in the incident that occurred at the Royal Air Force Fairford base last weekend."
Regarding this, Iran denies it.
According to IRNA, on October 1st, in response to Bernham's allegations, the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned Hugo Short, the British ambassador to Iran.
During this period, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Ravanchi expressed Iran’s ‘strong protest’ regarding the ‘continuing destructive actions of the British government towards Iran’.
Lavanchi emphasized that the claim by British officials that the alleged sabotage plot at the Royal Air Force Fairford base is linked to Iran is "baseless," and that the British government must provide a formal explanation for this matter, correcting its inappropriate stance towards Iran.
