U.K. believes Iran “played a part” in incident near RAF Fairford base used by U.S. forces, prime minister says

Updated on: September 30, 2026 / 12:07 PM EDT / CBS News

London — The British government believes Iran "played a part" in the incident over the weekend at the RAF Fairford air base in England, which has been used by U.S. warplanes carrying out strikes on Iran, U.K. Prime Minister Andy Burnham said Wednesday.

Burnham's remarks to the BBC were the first confirmation by the British government of its assessment of the incident, which saw five men — all British nationals in their mid-20s — arrested near RAF Fairford early Sunday morning on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act. They were all released on bail the following day, however, even though the police had the right to hold them for up to 14 days under U.K. counterterrorism laws.

Their quick release drew criticism from President Trump and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. But it also prompted questions in the U.K. as to whether the authorities had overreacted.

U.K. counterterrorism police said no explosives were found in extensive searches of the three vehicles operated by the men, only some fuel and a number of large, mostly empty plastic drums.

There were reports by local media, unconfirmed by authorities, that…

Original source: https://www.cbsnews.com/world/