RAF Fairford incident: One arrested man called emergency services before farmer raised alarm with police
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "RAF Fairford incident: One arrested man called emergency services before farmer raised alarm with police")
One of five men arrested near RAF Fairford called 999 before a farmer raised the alarm Photograph: (AFP)
One of five men arrested near RAF Fairford called 999 before a farmer raised the alarm, as police investigate possible terrorism and foreign-state links
One of the five men arrested near RAF Fairford in the early hours of Sunday morning had contacted police himself, according to BBC. The suspect reportedly called 999 at 00:45 BST, almost an hour before a female farmer contacted police after spotting a group of men wearing balaclavas. The five men were initially arrested on suspicion of explosives offences and later on suspicion of terrorism offences. Their arrests followed the discovery of three suspicious vans near RAF Fairford, the Gloucestershire base operated by the US military. All five were released on bail on Monday in what police described as an ‘investigative decision’ ‘grounded in experience and strategy’. Police said searches of the vans uncovered a quantity of petrol but no explosive devices.
Farmer's 999 call
Police were alerted to ‘three suspicious vehicles’ in Whelford, a village immediately east of the RAF base, after the farmer raised the alarm. Speaking to the BBC, she said it was pure luck that she noticed the vehicles. She had returned home to find the road blocked and encountered a large group of hooded and masked men. "I believe that my 999 call foiled whatever plans they had," she said. A bomb disposal team was sent to the scene shortly afterwards, while police established a 400m (1,312ft) cordon around the area.
However, Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, the head of Counter Terrorism Policing, said the police response had been based on a range of information'. The cordons around the base are expected to be fully removed on Wednesday. Residents of the 85 homes evacuated during Sunday's operation have since been permitted to return.
Five men remain under investigation
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The five suspects are all UK nationals aged between 23 and 25. Four are understood to live in Westminster, while the fifth lives in Camden. Searches of all five homes have now been completed. Taylor previously said their release on bail was subject to stringent conditions on their movement and contact with others while the investigation continues.
"The safety of the public is at the forefront of our investigative decision-making, and this was certainly the case yesterday," he said on Tuesday. “I understand why this development was surprising to some, but I would like to reiterate that this is an investigative decision and one which is grounded in experience and strategy.” Police are continuing to examine multiple lines of inquiry. These include investigating whether proxies or individuals knowingly or unknowingly working on behalf of a foreign state may have been involved. Taylor said the incident had understandably caused concern, with the situation "heightened by the international commentary that we are seeing", apparently referring to comments from the US administration.
RAF Fairford and US military operations
RAF Fairford has served as a forward operating location for the US Air Force for decades. In recent months, US bombers have operated from the Gloucestershire base as part of operations in the Middle East, following the UK's approval of a US request to use the facility for defensive strikes on Iran. US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he was ‘disappointed’ that the five men had been released on bail.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham chaired a Cobra meeting on Monday afternoon and urged the public not to speculate while the authorities establish the full facts. Iran has previously warned that any base used for aggression against Iranian territory constitutes a legitimate target for our forces.
The Iranian embassy in London, however, has categorically rejects and strongly condemns unfounded and malicious speculations linking Iran to the incident. The investigation remains ongoing, with police continuing to assess the circumstances surrounding the three vans, the arrests and any possible links to foreign actors.
