5 men held over bomb scare at England base used by US to attack Iran are UK nationals: police

Five men held over a bomb scare at a British air base used by the US are all UK nationals aged in their mid-20s, British counter-terror police said Monday. The five — a 25-year-old, three men aged 24 and a 23-year-old — all based in London, have been detained since Sunday on suspicion of offences including “preparation of a terrorist act” under UK anti-terrorism laws, according to police. The five were questioned by the police on Monday. Officers detained the group in the early hours of Sunday after they received a tip-off that three large white vans had been seen heading to the military airfield of RAF Fairford in the west of England. US President Donald Trump said the suspects had been looking to do “big damage” and had been under investigation by British and US authorities. However, a local farmer said she had tipped off police after seeing a group of “hooded and masked men” running into the fields. British counterterrorism detectives have publicly shared little about the suspects but a source familiar with the investigation earlier said an Iranian-linked motive was considered the most likely, while a Russian sabotage operation or a terrorism plot were also being looked at as possibilities. B-1 Lancer bomber at the RAF Fairford airbase, after police declared a major incident at the base after several men were arrested on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act, in Fairford, Gloucestershire, Britain on September 28, 2026. —Reuters Defence minister Wes Streeting told BBC News on Monday that he would not speculate about motives of a live investigation. But he added on the general Iranian threat to the country: “We know that Iran and their proxies wish to do us harm. We know that they hate our democracy, and we know that we regularly have to thwart Iranian attempts to threaten either our interests or indeed our allies.” In May, Britain sanctioned 12 individuals and entities linked to Iran, accusing them of involvement in hostile activity includi