Two men have been re-arrested in connection with an incident near the Royal Air Force Fairford base in Gloucestershire, United Kingdom, after counter-terrorism police raised concerns about possible Iranian state involvement.
The suspects, a 24-year-old British national and a 25-year-old dual British-Iranian national, are being held on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service under Section 3 of the National Security Act 2023.
Police said the investigation is linked to Iran.
The incident occurred in the early hours of September 27, when police received reports of three suspicious vehicles travelling towards the US airbase.
Authorities subsequently declared a major incident, leading to the evacuation of dozens of homes in the surrounding area.
Seven men were initially arrested during the counter-terrorism investigation and later released on bail. Five of them were found with petrol in three vans near the base.
They were first arrested on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act before being further detained on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act.
The latest arrests, announced on Tuesday, concern the 24-year-old man initially detained near the airbase on September 27 and the 25-year-old, who was arrested in Westminster on October 1 on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts.
The other five suspects remain on police bail.
The head of National Counter Terrorism Policing, Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, said investigators were still gathering evidence and believed Iranian authorities were likely involved.
“This is very much a live investigation, and our evidence gathering continues, but at this time our position remains the same; we consider it highly likely that there is Iranian state involvement.
“Our investigators are continuing to examine what that level of involvement was and the ambition behind it.”
Taylor said investigations involving national security could take considerable time because of their sensitive nature.
“Our specialist teams have been working tirelessly to interrogate the many lines of enquiry involved in this hugely complex investigation,” he said.
Gloucestershire Police had earlier confirmed receiving a report about three suspicious vehicles heading towards RAF Fairford at 00:45 BST on September 27.
A bomb disposal team was subsequently deployed to examine several vehicles in a nearby village.
