Internatinal Desk: Police in the United Kingdom have released on bail five men who were arrested on suspicion of “terrorism” and explosives offences near an airbase in western England, as Iran denied any involvement in what officials have described as an alleged plot.
The men, all British citizens in their early 20s from London, were freed on Monday, more than a day after they were detained when three vans were spotted in the countryside near RAF Fairford, a UK-owned base that the United States has used in its war against Iran. The base has been a focus of antiwar protests.
Laurence Taylor, the head of counterterrorism policing in the UK, said the men would be subject to “stringent” bail conditions.
“To be very clear, this does not mean that the investigation is over,” Taylor said in a statement outside police headquarters in London. “They absolutely remain under investigation as we explore multiple lines of enquiry.”
Investigators have not determined whether a foreign government was behind the alleged plot and are examining possible links to Iran, Russia or non-state armed groups. Police have not publicly tied Iran to the arrests.
The men are being investigated under the Explosives Act and on suspicion of “preparation of a terrorist act”.
‘Iranophobia propaganda’
Taylor did not mention Iran by name, but acknowledged public interest in whether the geopolitical climate had played a role.
“Be assured, we are considering this from every possible angle, including that this may be actively committed by proxies or individuals either knowingly or unknowingly working on behalf of a foreign state,” he said.
Iran’s embassy in London rejected the suggestion.
In a statement on Monday, it said it “categorically rejects and strongly condemns the recent unfounded and malicious speculations” by some British individuals and news outlets, warning that the claims would feed “Iranophobia propaganda” in the UK.
The embassy also said Iran reserved the right to “take appropriate legal measures”.
US President Donald Trump, speaking to reporters at the White House, said the incident “might be” connected to Iran, adding that he would not have released the suspects on bail. “I wouldn’t have done that,” he said.
On Sunday, Trump had said the suspects wanted to do “big damage” and had been under investigation by authorities in the UK and the US. The assertion prompted questions in the UK news media about how closely the men had been monitored, given how near they came to the base.
‘Partial picture’
The UK government gave the US authorisation to use bombers based at RAF Fairford to strike Iranian missile sites that were attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had said in July that the Fairford base was a legitimate target.
UK police were alerted on Sunday by a farmer who reported that three suspicious vehicles appeared to be heading towards the base. The farmer, who has not been publicly identified, told reporters she saw “hooded and masked men” running into fields and estimated there were as many as 10 people.
She said she believed her call to the 999 emergency line had foiled any plot.
The UK’s national news agency, PA, reported, without citing sources, that police had not found viable explosives.
Defence Secretary Wes Streeting told the BBC broadcaster that the farmer had only a “partial picture” of the investigation. He did not elaborate.
“We know that Iran and their proxies wish to do us harm,” Streeting said. “We know that they hate our democracy, and we know that we regularly have to thwart Iranian attempts to threaten either our interests or indeed our allies.”
Separately, Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said on Monday that the UK must be prepared to “confront” all security threats facing Europe and the world, adding: “We will act against the proxies of Iran.”
Prime Minister Andy Burnham, meanwhile, chaired a meeting of the government’s emergency response committee over the incident.
Source: Al Jazeera
