British Prime Minister Andy Burnham on Wednesday (September 30, 2026) said there were “strong indications” that Iran was involved in suspicious activity at a U.K. airbase that triggered a major security incident this weekend.
Burnham. The nature of the threat has not been explained by officials. Mr. Burnham’s comments are the first official confirmation from U.K. authorities that Iran may have had a hand in the incident, which saw three white vans appearing to head towards RAF Fairford in the early hours of Sunday.
Police said on Tuesday (September 29, 2026) that no explosives were found at the scene. The case was plunged into confusion when U.K. police released on bail five British men it had arrested on Sunday (September 27, 2026) on suspicion of explosives and terrorism offences. Then on Wednesday (September 30, 2026), The Times newspaper reported that the incident had been foiled after one of the five suspects tipped off the police before the group was apprehended.
“Of course it remains an ongoing, complex, and serious police investigation,” said Mr. Iran’s embassy in London earlier said it “categorically rejects and strongly condemns” speculation it was involved in the incident, while Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi posted on X that Mr. Burnham was “barking up the wrong tree”. A local resident who rang the police said she saw a group of masked men near the vans, which were blocking a road in a village next to the military base.
