The five men arrested over a suspected bomb plot near RAF Fairford are all British nationals living in London, UK counter-terrorism police said Monday. The suspects are aged between 23 and 25, and police said they were pursuing multiple new lines of inquiry.
The men were arrested early Sunday near the Gloucestershire base, from which US B-1 bombers have been flying missions against Iran. They were initially held on suspicion of offenses under the Explosives Act and were later additionally arrested on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act. Authorities have not said where the men are being held or what was found in the three white vans they appear to have used.
London's Metropolitan Police said it received a call about three suspicious vehicles traveling near the base at about 12:45 a.m. Sunday. At least 85 nearby homes were evacuated at around 7 a.m. Aerial footage showed a bomb disposal robot moving between the three vans, one of which bore the words "FUEL 2YOU" in red lettering along with a phone number. A local resident said the vans carried red business branding and a false phone number.
Vicki Evans, a senior officer in Counter Terrorism Policing, said the investigation was in its early stages. Defense Minister Wes Streeting said Monday the investigation is continuing.
The Telegraph reported Sunday that counter-terrorism police are investigating whether Iran was behind the plot. According to the Associated Press, authorities are examining an Iran link as one possibility but had reached no conclusion as of Monday about whether the plot was state-backed. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has previously indicated that a base used to attack its territory is a legitimate target.
President Donald Trump said the suspects had been under surveillance for a long time and were "looking to do big damage," and praised British authorities for the arrests.
The case comes amid heightened concern over hostile-state activity on British soil. British security officials say Iran-linked proxies have been behind a string of arson and sabotage attempts in the UK, and officials said in March that national security cases involving hostile states, including Iran, rose 50 percent in the six months to December 2025.
