Seventh man bailed in connection with RAF Fairford incident

A 22-year-old British national who was arrested on suspicion of preparation of terrorist acts in connection with an incident close to RAF Fairford has been released on bail.

The man was arrested in Westminster, London, under Section 5 of the Terrorism Act 2006 on Tuesday, as part of the counter-terror police investigation into the incident near the airbase in Gloucestershire.

In total, seven men – all in their 20s – have been arrested and later bailed in connection with the incident. No one has been charged.

A major incident was declared and dozens of homes were evacuated after police were alerted to three suspicious vehicles near the airbase in the early hours of 27 September.

Five men, aged between 23 and 25, were initially arrested on the day of the incident after vehicles were reported near the base.

They were arrested on suspicion of explosives offences and later on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act.

A sixth man, a 25-year-old dual Iranian-British national, was arrested on 1 October in Westminster. The seventh man, a 22-year-old British national, was arrested in Westminster on Tuesday by counter-terror police.

RAF Fairford, near the village of Whelford, has been used by the US Air Force for decades.

In recent months, the US has flown B-1 and B-52 bombers from the base to the Middle East, after the UK approved a request for Fairford to be used for defensive strikes against Iran.

But on Sunday, it emerged the US had pulled its bombers out of the base and returned them to America.

US President Donald Trump said the aircraft were removed due to “some threats” to the base without giving specific details.

“There were some threats. And rather than tempting the enemy, we’ll capture the enemy and beat the enemy,” he told reporters.

“But why should we leave them there? So we moved them around a little bit. Not very far.”

Prior to Trump’s intervention, a No 10 spokesperson had insisted RAF Fairford was safe and pointed to the US president’s previous comments, where he praised the UK’s “police, defence and security services” in relation to the base.