5 British suspects in air base attack plot released on bail; Iran denies involvement

British police said on Monday they had released on bail five British men who were arrested on suspicion of terrorism and explosives offences near an airbase used by the US, although they remain under investigation, as counterterror detectives investigated whether the alleged attempted attack was linked to Iran.

The men were detained early Sunday after three vans were spotted near RAF Fairford, a UK-owned base that has been used by American bombers during decades of conflicts in the Middle East, including this year’s war against Iran.

Laurence Taylor, head of Counter Terrorism Policing, said officers were looking into every angle after the incident at the RAF Fairford base, “including that this may be actively committed by proxies or individuals either knowingly or unknowingly working on behalf of a foreign state.”

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Investigators have not concluded whether the incident is a state-backed attack. They are investigating a possible link to Iran, Russia or non-state-backed terror groups. RAF Fairford has also been the focus of protests by anti-war campaigners.

Iran denied involvement. Its London embassy said it “categorically rejects and strongly condemns the recent unfounded and malicious speculations” about the incident.

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The five suspects, who have not been named, were initially held over suspected explosives offenses, and later also arrested on suspicion of preparing an act of terrorism. Police said the men are all British nationals from London and in their 20s.

Residents were evacuated from 85 homes in the village of Whelford near the base on Sunday and army bomb-disposal experts used a robot to examine three white vans. The villagers had not been able to go home as of Monday morning, and the vans had not yet been moved.

US President Donald Trump said the suspects had been detained following cooperation between the US and Britain, and had been “under view” for some time. Police, however, said the arrests were triggered by a late-night call about “suspicious vehicles” near the base.

British Defense Secretary Wes Streeting declined to give details of the operation, but said “it was a proud moment” that Trump had recognized “the work that our police and intelligence services do every day.”

“As and when we can, we will report back to the public about these individuals and about the nature of the threat,” Streeting told Times Radio.

Iran has been linked to a series of attacks in Europe

The arrests come at a time of heightened tensions around the threat from hostile states, with British intelligence services saying Russia and Iran have both used proxies to commit crimes on British soil. In March, officials said the number of national security cases involving activity by hostile states, including Iran, increased 50 percent in the six months leading up to December 2025.

Britain did not join the US-Israeli war on Iran that began February 28 and initially denied Trump’s request to use bases in the UK to strike the Islamic Republic. But then-prime minister Keir Starmer agreed in March to let the US use bases in Britain for what he called “defensive” operations against Iran’s missiles and their launch sites following Iranian attacks on UK interests and Britain’s allies in the Gulf.

American B-1 and B-52 bombers have taken off from Fairford, 160 kilometers (100 miles) west of London, for operations during the Iran conflict.

Iran has said it considers any base used to attack its territory a legitimate target.

British security officials say proxies linked to Iran have been behind a string of arson and sabotage attempts in the UK and other countries, many of them targeting the Jewish community. They have previously warned that Tehran could expand its targets in the UK if conflicts in the Middle East continue.

British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said Monday that the incident was a “reminder of the threats our country faces.”

Miliband met Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi at the United Nations in New York last week and told him that “Britain will not tolerate intimidation, threats or hostile activity on UK soil,” according to a UK readout of the conversation.

The US Air Force said its personnel based at RAF Fairford “remain vigilant,” but “for operational security reasons we will not discuss specific force protection measures.”

The US Embassy in London has warned Americans in Britain to be cautious and mindful of their personal security.

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