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NY Post, 9-27-26
British cops on Sunday arrested five suspected terrorists accused of plotting a van bombing attack at a UK military base used by the US Air Force for its strikes on Iran.
Dramatic pictures show the suspects being held at gunpoint while stripped to the waist, after officers suspected they may have been wearing suicide vests for their alleged plot, according to reports.
Police believe that there could be a link to the Iranian regime, but are investigating several possible motives, the Telegraph reported.
A bomb disposal robot was later seen moving between three vans after chemicals and suspected explosive devices were found during the operation at Royal Air Force Fairford in Gloucestershire, Southwest England, the UK Sun reported.
Cops were informed of three “suspicious vans” in the village of Whelford early Sunday morning, a local resident, Julian Tudsbery, told the Guardian.
The base, roughly 90 miles from London, is the US Air Force’s command outpost for operations from Europe, and has been used for American strikes on Iranian missile sites that have been attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard in July previously issued a chilling warning to Britain’s government not to allow US bombers to fly from the base, which is home to the US 501st Combat Support Wing Headquarters and the 420th Air Base Squadron.
Cops evacuated locals from the nearby village of Whelford during the operation after declaring a major incident.
A roughly 400-yard cordon was placed around the three suspicious vehicles, with a total of 85 households evacuated while examinations took place.
Residents were woken at 6 a.m. local time by police banging on their doors and telling them to leave immediately, before they were taken to a nearby community center.
“[Police] were then banging on the door, so I went downstairs in my dressing gown,” Tudsbery said.
“There were several police, three police cars in the drive, and they said you need to evacuate, there’s been a major incident, said he couldn’t elaborate,” he added.
The five suspects are being held on suspicion of possessing explosives, with MI5 assisting counter-terror police.
Iranian agents are likely to have been directly involved in the suspected plot themselves, rather than operating through proxies, sources familiar with the investigation told the Telegraph.
Cops are continuing their investigations, but the threat is contained, according to Gloucestershire Police.
Some 30 emergency vehicles, including police cars, ambulances and fire engines, were spotted in the nearby village of Fairford, while a helicopter flew overhead.
A USAF spokesperson said US and British personnel “remain vigilant” and will take appropriate actions to ensure safety of all at the base
“For operational security reasons we will not discuss specific force protection measures,” the spokesperson said. “We constantly assess a variety of factors that determine what measures we institute or modify to protect our installations, our people and their families.”
New British Prime Minister Andy Burnham is being kept updated about the incident, a government spokesperson said.
Locals reported dramatically increased security measures around the base in recent weeks.
One noted “very heavy vehicles across all gates” and “great big concrete walls” going up at entrances to the base, the Guardian reported.
RAF Fairford has a particularly long runway, extending almost two miles, which has been reinforced to support heavy bombers such as the B-1 and B-52, that have been deployed in attacks on Iran.
With Post wires.
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