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UK police arrest five men near RAF Fairford, base used by U.S. bombers against Iran

Counterterrorism detectives are holding the men on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act after three vans were reported heading toward the base early Sunday, Sept. 27; about 85 households were evacuated.

Motion Media News Staff

Sep 27, 2026

3 minutes

A large gray B-52 bomber with its landing gear down flies low over green English countryside.

Photo: U.S. Air Force / Staff Sgt. Kristen Heller (Public domain), via Wikimedia Commons (source)

British police arrested five men early Sunday, Sept. 27, near RAF Fairford, an air base in western England that U.S. bombers have used for strikes on Iran, after a report of three suspicious vans heading toward the airfield, Reuters reported via Defense News.

Police got the call at about 12:45 a.m. local time, according to Richard Ocone, an assistant chief constable with Gloucestershire police, as quoted by The War Zone. Armed officers stopped the vehicles near the village of Whelford and initially held the men on suspected Explosives Act offenses. Counterterrorism detectives leading the investigation later said the men were being held on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act.

Police set up a 400-meter cordon while an Army bomb disposal team examined the vans, and about 85 households were told to leave their homes. "We are in the early stages of an investigation, and five men remain in custody," said Vicki Evans, senior national coordinator for Counter Terrorism Policing. Police said they believed the incident was contained.

Gloucestershire's temporary chief constable, Maggie Blyth, said residents of those households could not yet return home, NPR reported. Police have not identified the suspects or said whether they were known to authorities.

U.S. and British reaction

President Donald Trump called the arrests "fantastic" and said the men had been under investigation. "They were looking to do big damage," he told reporters, according to Reuters.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham was being briefed, the British government said. Burnham wrote on X that the incident "will be deeply concerning for local residents."

Police have not said who they believe was behind the plot. A source familiar with the investigation told Reuters that an Iranian-linked motive was considered most likely, and that investigators were also looking at possible Russian sabotage or an Islamist plot.

Background

Britain opposes the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran but has allowed U.S. forces to fly what London describes as defensive strikes from British bases, NPR reported. According to Reuters, London cleared Fairford-based U.S. bombers to hit Iranian missile sites that had targeted shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. In July, Iran's Revolutionary Guards warned Britain that bases used for attacks on Iran would be treated as legitimate targets, and the British government said its forces were ready to protect the country.