2 suspects rearrested in UK over last month's RAF Fairford incident
- 'At this time our position remains the same; we consider it highly likely that there is Iranian state involvement,' says head of National Counter Terrorism Policing
By Burak Bir
LONDON (AA) - Two men have been rearrested on suspicion of assisting Iran intelligence after last month’s incident around a British Royal Air Force base, police said Tuesday.
A 24-year-old UK national and a 25-year-old dual UK-Iranian national are being held on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service under Section 3 of the National Security Act 2023, counter-terrorism police said in a statement.
The force said the investigation relates to Iran.
After police were alerted to three suspicious vehicles near the RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire early on Sept. 27, a major incident was declared and dozens of homes evacuated.
Earlier, seven men in total had been arrested as part of the counter-terror police investigation on suspicion of committing offences under the Explosives Act and suspicion of preparing a terrorist act.
The other five men remain on police bail.
"This is very much a live investigation, and our evidence gathering continues, but at this time our position remains the same; we consider it highly likely that there is Iranian state involvement," said Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, the head of National Counter Terrorism Policing.
He added: "Our investigators are continuing to examine what that level of involvement was and the ambition behind it."
Earlier this month, Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the alleged terror plot “is highly likely to have been coordinated in Iran, almost certainly directed by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard (IRGC).”
Iran, however, rejected the allegations that Tehran was involved in the incident and summoned the British ambassador in Tehran over accusations by senior UK officials linking Tehran to the incident.