A UK-Iranian dual national has been arrested today over the suspected terror plot near an RAF base used by the US.
The 27-year-old man was arrested in Westminster, London, on suspicion of preparation of terrorist acts under Section 5 of the Terrorism Act 2006.
A second man, 26, who is a UK national, has also been questioned under caution. Two properties in the same area were also searched, counter terrorism police said.
In a statement released this afternoon, the national policing network said ‘all possible angles, including foreign state involvement’ are to be considered within its investigation.
It comes after Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed today he warned UK authorities about the ‘Iranian-sponsored attack’ shortly after Britain announced a ban on trade with illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
Five men in their mid-20s, who were arrested close to RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire on Sunday on suspicion of explosive offences and terrorism, remain on police bail.
The group, all UK nationals from London, were arrested in the early morning on Sunday after police were alerted by a farmer to ‘three suspicious vehicles’ in the Cotswold village of Whelford. The homes of the men, one in Camden and four in Westminster, were searched.
The men were released on bail on Monday under what police described as an ‘investigative decision’ that was ‘grounded in experience and strategy’. Petrol but no explosive devices were found in the vans parked near the base.
The five British men are arrested near RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire early on Sunday
Three white vans are investigated by a robot after the alleged plot near RAF Fairford
A van belonging to the real company ‘Fuel 2U’ – in no way linked to the RAF Fairford incident
Senior national coordinator for counter terrorism policing Vicki Evans said today: ‘The investigation into circumstances surrounding events in Gloucestershire is hugely complex, and our specialist teams are interrogating multiple lines of enquiry.
‘As we’ve made clear, we’re looking at all possible angles – including possible foreign state involvement. I’d like to thank the public for their continued support and patience whilst we work through this investigation.’
The arrest comes after Prime Minister Andy Burnham claimed there are ‘strong indications that Iran played a part’ in the incident, although he declined to go into further detail.
But Iran’s London embassy has fiercely denied any involvement in Sunday’s incident.
Mr Burnham told GB News on Wednesday: ‘There are strong indications that Iran played a part in what happened over the weekend. It is, though, still an ongoing and very serious police investigation.’
He added: ‘Obviously, I’ve been dealing with this as I’ve been here in Liverpool [for the Labour Party Conference]. We have held a Cobra meeting here. We are completely on top of things, but will say more when we can.’
Asked about the bail, Mr Burnham told the BBC: ‘I think people need to understand that when it says released – that isn’t as people might think. It’s obviously with the strictest possible bail conditions.
‘The authorities have this under the strongest grip and closest control, and I can assure you of that.’
Armed police maintained road blocks and security checks around RAF Fairford on Sunday in Fairford, England
One of the three vans near RAF Fairford had ‘Fuel 2You’ printed on its exterior in red text
The ‘Fuel 2You’ branding raised suspicions the men may have been transporting fuel
However, Mr Netanyahu has claimed Israel handed Britain intelligence about the suspected plot. Speaking to Fox News, the Israeli PM said: ‘You talked about the thing in Britain. Do you want to hear how absurd things are there and how far the anti-Israeli propaganda has gone?
‘We gave the Brits the intel that there was going to be an attack, and it’s an Iranian-sponsored attack, and pretty much the next day they slapped sanctions on us. On us.
‘It’s wild, the caving in, the collapse before the Islamist-Marxist alliance is very dangerous for the future of the West.’
Mr Netanyahu did not provide further details but he appeared to suggest the UK Government was given the intelligence before it unveiled its trade ban.
The announcement of the sanctions last month, in response to the expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, sparked a diplomatic row between the Israeli and UK governments.
Meanwhile Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said Prime Minister Mr Burnham was ‘barking up the wrong tree’ with his comments about Iran’s potential involvement – and criticised the bailing of the suspects.
He wrote on X on Wednesday night: ‘PM Burnham says the UK Government ‘can confirm our belief that we believe Iran to have played a part’ in the RAF Fairford incident.
‘I can confirm Iran’s belief that releasing supposed terrorists working for foreign states really says it all. You’re barking up the wrong tree.’
Israel handed Britain intelligence about a suspected terror plot near RAF Fairford, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Fox News today
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, pictured at the UN Headquarters in New York last week
The base has been used in recent months by US bombers to launch air strikes against Iran – and potential involvement by Tehran is a main line of inquiry for investigators, given the country has used proxies in the past to carry out acts in Britain.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard warned in July that any base used in strikes against its country would be a legitimate target.
That came after the Iranian ambassador to London, Seyed Ali Mousavi, said the decision to allow American bombers to launch from RAF Fairford had become an ‘important matter for our self-defence’.
On Sunday, the farmer who alerted the authorities said one of the three vans in the incident had lettering on the side which appeared to be fake. It carried branding for ‘Fuel 2You’ – unrelated to a real fuel delivery company, Beaconsfield-based ‘Fuel2U’.
It has also been noted that the phone number beneath the company name – 0742 418 2599 – was spaced in a format predominantly used in Iran.
Others pointed out how it was odd to use a red logo for a business supplying fuel, when the colour of petrol pumps in the UK is green. In Iran, the colour is red.
It comes as a video showed the moment a police robot blasted the doors off one of the vans near the base. The clip, exclusively obtained by the Daily Mail, was captured on a resident’s security camera.
Meanwhile, it has been revealed that one of the five men arrested over the plot called police before they were detained.
The suspect phoned around an hour before a farmer said she called 999 at 1.36am on Sunday after discovering three vans blocking a road near the base.