UK examines foreign state involvement in suspected airbase plot, releases suspects
Five British men arrested near RAF Fairford will be released on bail as police continue investigating possible foreign-state involvement.
Highlights:
- Five UK nationals were arrested near Fairford base on Sunday
- Police say suspects will be freed but investigation continues
- Iran denies it is involved
- Military base used by US to attack Iranian sites
British police said on Monday they were investigating whether individuals acting for a foreign state were involved in an apparent plot to attack an airbase used by the United States but said five suspects they had arrested would be released.
The five men, all British nationals from London in their early 20s, were detained early on Sunday after police were alerted to three white vans driving towards RAF Fairford, a British base that houses US bombers that fly missions against Iran.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
Iran's Revolutionary Guards said in July the base was a legitimate target.
Laurence Taylor, who heads Britain's counter-terrorism police, said the men, who had been arrested on suspicion of explosives offences and planning a terrorist act, would be released under stringent bail conditions later on Monday.
Investigation is not over
"To be very clear, this does not mean that the investigation is over," he said in a statement outside London police's headquarters. "They absolutely remain under investigation as we explore multiple lines of enquiry."
A source familiar with the investigation had previously told Reuters that an Iranian-linked motive was considered the most likely, although a Russian sabotage operation or an Islamist plot were also being looked at as possibilities.
Iran's embassy in London had earlier said in a statement it "categorically rejects and strongly condemns the recent unfounded and malicious speculations" that it was involved, which it said would fuel "Iranophobia propaganda" in Britain.
Taylor, who did not specifically refer to Iran, said he knew there was significant interest in whether the current geopolitical context had a bearing on this incident.
"Be assured, we are considering this from every possible angle, including that this may be actively committed by proxies or individuals either knowingly or unknowingly working on behalf of a foreign state."
