UK Detains Seventh Suspect Over Possible Attack on Fairford Air Base

UK police have detained a seventh suspect in connection with an alleged plot to carry out a terrorist attack near Fairford Air Base in Gloucestershire.

Reuters reported that the 22-year-old British man was detained in Westminster, London, on Tuesday. He is suspected of preparing terrorist attacks.

Law enforcement officers also searched a property in the area but provided no details about what they may have found. The man remains in custody.

“This investigation remains ongoing, and our specialist teams continue to carry out extensive inquiries into the circumstances surrounding the events near RAF Fairford,” said Vicki Evans, the senior national counter-terrorism coordinator.

Earlier in the investigation, six men aged between 23 and 25 were detained, including a man who holds both British and Iranian citizenship.

All six were later released on bail. However, they remain under investigation and must comply with restrictions on their movements and contacts.

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham said there are signs that Iran may have been involved in an alleged plot to carry out a terrorist attack near Fairford Air Base.

What happened near Fairford Air Base

On September 27, British police were alerted to three suspicious vehicles traveling toward the airfield. Bomb disposal officers were sent to the scene, and around 85 households in the area were evacuated as a precaution.

After examining the three vans, police said they had found no improvised explosive devices. However, they did find a quantity of petrol.

UK counter-terrorism police reported that they were investigating several possibilities, including whether the suspects may have been acting on behalf of a foreign state. At the time, officials did not publicly name any specific country.

The Iranian Embassy in the UK rejected claims of possible Iranian involvement, calling them baseless. Following Burnham’s remarks, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also denied the allegations.

Fairford is one of the UK’s key air bases and is also used by US military aircraft, including aircraft involved in strikes on Iranian territory. Amid the investigation into the alleged terror plot, the US withdrew all of its B-1B bombers from the air base on October 4.