Five men arrested near RAF Fairford on suspicion of terrorism offences have been released on police bail, counter-terror police have confirmed — as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio claimed the incident “clearly involves the hands of a foreign actor.”
This follows our earlier report: Major incident declared near RAF Fairford as police cordon off airbase and arrest several men.
Men released on bail
Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, head of National Counter Terrorism Policing, confirmed on Monday afternoon (28 September) that all five suspects had been released on bail. He stressed the investigation was far from over: “They absolutely remain under investigation as we explore multiple lines of enquiry.”
The five men are all British nationals from London, aged between 23 and 25. They were arrested in the early hours of Sunday near the village of Whelford — around 300 metres from RAF Fairford’s perimeter fence — after a local resident called police at 1.36am, having spotted three vans “parked in a really weird fan shape” blocking a rural road near the base, according to The Guardian.
Army explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) teams used a remote-controlled robot to examine the three vehicles at the scene. Police have not confirmed whether any explosives were found. Analysts told Al Jazeera that the swift bail release suggests authorities found little evidence of a viable plot: “If there had been any trace of explosives found in the vans… they would not have been released,” former National Counter Terrorism Security Office head Chris Phillips told Al Jazeera.
Rubio claims foreign state involvement
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio went further than British investigators in a Fox News interview on Monday evening, saying the incident “clearly involves the hands of a foreign actor.” He did not name a specific country or provide evidence, but referenced Iran, saying it had “openly threatened to attack American interests globally.”
US President Donald Trump had earlier said the incident “might be” connected to Iran, and expressed surprise that the five men had been released on bail: “I wouldn’t have done that,” Trump said at the White House on Monday.
Iran’s embassy in London rejected any suggestion of involvement. In a statement on X, it said it “categorically rejects and strongly condemns the recent unfounded and malicious speculations” linking it to the incident, adding that such claims would “serve no purpose other than to fuel Iranophobia propaganda in the UK.”
Investigation ongoing — Iran, Russia and non-state groups considered
AC Taylor confirmed investigators are “considering this from every possible angle,” including the possibility of activity by “proxies or individuals, either knowingly or unknowingly, working on behalf of a foreign state.” Euronews reported that police are examining possible links to Iran, Russia, and non-state militant groups.
RAF Fairford, located near the Gloucestershire-Wiltshire border, is a UK base primarily operated by the US Air Force and has been used to launch B-1 and B-52 bomber strikes on Iran since February 2026. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) declared the base a “legitimate target” in July.
Residents return home; cordon remains around vehicles
All 85 households evacuated during Sunday’s major incident have been told they can return home by Gloucestershire Police. A cordon remains in place around the three vehicles while forensic examination continues.
Sources: Counter Terrorism Policing, BBC News, The Guardian, Euronews, Gloucestershire Live, Al Jazeera, The Independent (29 September 2026)
