Prime Minister Andy Burnham stated that Iran was involved in an incident at RAF Fairford where five men were arrested and later released on bail. The UK government believes there are strong indications of Iranian involvement, a claim Tehran denies. Burnham defended the decision to release the suspects under strict conditions, emphasizing close cooperation with US authorities despite criticism from President Donald Trump.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-30,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
In recent days, security measures at RAF Fairford, a U.S. Air Force base in Gloucestershire, England, significantly increased with armed police and roadblocks preventing access to the base. On Sunday morning, British police declared a major incident after suspicious vehicles were reported near the airbase; five UK nationals in their 20s were arrested and later released on bail for terror offenses under suspicion of involvement with explosives.
Local residents noted heavy vehicles and concrete barriers blocking entrances to the base weeks before the incident. Around 30 emergency vehicles, including police cars, ambulances, and fire engines, were stationed near the base during heightened security measures. The arrests occurred amid increased tensions between the U.S., Iran, and the UK; Iranian officials have denied involvement.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio suggested a "foreign actor" was involved, linking it to threats from adversaries like Iran, while British Prime Minister Andy Burnham indicated there are strong indications that Iran played a role in the incident, despite ongoing investigations. The U.K. and U.S. have been closely cooperating on this matter, with Burnham stating they were “on top of it.”
Written for “RAF Fairford Terror Plot Incident” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 192 other(s) covering the same event.
- Published
The government believes that Iran played a part in the RAF Fairford incident which resulted in five men being arrested and then bailed, Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said.
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Burnham → publish → incident
"There are strong indications that Iran played a part in what happened over the weekend at RAF Fairford," he told the BBC.
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he → be → BBC
He did not provide further details.
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Tehran has strongly denied any involvement.
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Tehran → deny → involvement
Burnham's comments come after it emerged that one of the five men had dialled 999 himself before the group were arrested.
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group → come → 999
Asked why the suspects had been released on bail - a decision which has been openly questioned by President Donald Trump - the prime minister insisted the men were subject to the "strictest possible bail conditions" and added that UK authorities "have this under the strongest grip and closest control".
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authorities → ask → grip
Speaking at the White House on Monday, Trump said: "I will tell you, I would have said, 'don't let them have bail'.
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them → speak → bail
I'm surprised that they released them.
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they → release → them
I wouldn't have done that."
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I → do → that
But Burnham said: "I think people need to understand that when it says released - that isn't as people might think.
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The authorities have this under the strongest grip and closest control, and I can assure you of that."
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I → have → that
Burnham's comments come after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday that the incident at RAF Fairford "clearly involves the hands of a foreign actor".
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incident → come → actor
In an interview with Fox News on Monday, Rubio said "I think it ties us to the reality here, and that is we are dealing with elements in the world, and in the case of Iran, for example, who have openly threatened to attack American interests globally".
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who → say → interests
Burnham said that the government had been "talking to our counterparts in the United States all week to explain what is happening here, how things are being done", and that he had "complete confidence in the way British security services are handling this".
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services → say → this
"We will say more in due course but we can confirm our belief that we believe Iran to have played a part," he told the BBC.
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he → say → BBC
"Of course it remains an ongoing, complex and serious police investigation, and of course we are working closely with our colleagues in the United States of America," Burnham added.
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Burnham → remain → America
The five men in question were arrested in the early hours of Sunday morning after police were alerted to "three suspicious vehicles" in Whelford, a village which lies directly east of the base.
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which → arrest → base
They are all UK nationals aged between 23 and 25.
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Four of them live in Westminster and one in Camden, and searches of their homes are now complete.
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searches → live → homes
The men were released on bail in what police described as an "investigative decision" that was "grounded in experience and strategy".
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that → release → experience
Police said a quantity of petrol but no explosive devices were found during searches of the vans.
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quantity → say → vans
The RAF base has been used as a forward operating location by the US Air Force for decades.
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base → use → decades
In recent months, US bombers have taken off from the base for the Middle East, after the UK approved a US request to use it for what it called defensive strikes on Iran.
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it → take → Iran
In July, Iran said "any base used for aggression against Iranian territory constitutes a legitimate target for our forces".
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base → say → forces
However, the Iranian embassy in London has said it "categorically rejects and strongly condemns" any "unfounded and malicious speculations" linking Iran to the latest incident.
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The Aporia
