Informative · RAF Fairford

Britain just arrested five men over a plot linked to Iran's air war

3 days ago · 28 September 2026Share

RAF Fairford airfield. File photo. David Howard · CC BY-SA 2.0

Five men are in custody right now, arrested near RAF Fairford.

And here's the thing. That's the base American B-1B bombers have flown from to strike Iran.

So investigators are now saying Iran is the leading theory behind whatever this was.

Here's what happened. Gloucestershire Police got a call at 00:45 BST, about a day ago, about three suspicious vehicles heading towards the base. The men were arrested near Whelford, a village around two miles south-east of RAF Fairford. They're held on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act and Explosives Act offences.

Around 85 households got moved out to a nearby leisure centre, just as a precaution. Army bomb disposal teams searched the vehicles inside a 400-metre cordon.

Sky News aired aerial footage that appeared to show a bomb disposal robot working between three white vans, rear doors open.

All five men are still in custody. Counter Terrorism Policing, part of the Metropolitan Police, is running the investigation.

Vicki Evans, the Counter Terrorism Policing Senior National Coordinator, says quote "five men remain in custody".

No names. No ages. No nationalities. No charges yet.

So why is Iran in the frame?

Because of what this base just did. In March, three US B-1B Lancer bombers flew out of RAF Fairford in what's believed to be the first American strike mission against Iran launched from British soil. This isn't a new role for the base either — it was used in the Gulf War, and again in the 2003 Iraq war.

And Iran had already put bases like it on notice. Two months ago, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned that British military facilities supporting US operations against Iran could be considered legitimate targets.

A source close to the investigation told Reuters that an Iran-linked motive is the leading possibility. Russian sabotage and a separate Islamist plot are also being looked at.

But police haven't confirmed any of that. It's one source's account. Not a police finding.

Then Donald Trump, the US President, went much further, in public, before police had said anything at all.

The rest of this story is for members.

Donald Trump says quote "were looking to do big damage to our ports", and says the suspects had been under investigation for a long time before the arrests.

So the American president just described a motive and a target police haven't confirmed. And he got the target wrong doing it. RAF Fairford is an air base. Not a port.

One outlet, ABC News, reported the same remark as "our fort", which would at least match the base. So it isn't even clear which word Donald Trump actually said.

British officials are holding back where Donald Trump didn't. Wes Streeting, the UK Defence Secretary, says it is far too early to comment or speculate on whether Iran is involved.

Andy Burnham, the Prime Minister, has called it deeply concerning. He's asked the public not to speculate.

The US Embassy in London has told American citizens to be cautious. It says Britain's terrorism threat level is rated "severe" — the second-highest of five levels, meaning an attack is highly likely.

British security officials say Iran-linked proxies have been behind previous arson and sabotage attempts in the UK. They've warned Tehran could widen its targets if the conflicts in the Middle East keep going.

Under the Terrorism Act 2000, the five men can be held for up to 14 days before police have to charge or release them.

Gloucestershire Police say they believe the incident is contained. A Whelford resident of 30 years, Julian Tudsbery, says a neighbour reported three suspicious vans in the village in the early hours.

So where does that leave things? Nobody has confirmed who the men are, what was in the vans, or whether the Iran theory holds up.

Right now, that's one line from one source. Next to a base that has already flown a strike mission against Iran. And a threat Iran's own guard corps made two months ago.

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Britain just arrested five men over a plot linked to Iran's air war

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