2 men rearrested in U.K. on suspicion of assisting Iran over suspected plot at a U.S.-run air base

LONDON — British police said Tuesday they have rearrested two men on suspicion of assisting Iran’s intelligence service over a suspected plot at a U.S.-run air base in England last month.

Counter Terrorism Policing said the men, a 24-year-old British national and a 25-year-old dual U.K.-Iranian national, were arrested under the National Security Act.

One of the suspects was first arrested on Sept. 27, when the suspected plot against the U.S.-run base at RAF Fairford took place. The air base in western England has been used to bomb Iran during this year’s war.

The second suspect was first arrested on Oct. 1. Until Tuesday the men had been bailed pending more investigation.

Scores of residents were evacuated from their homes near the base as armed police officers and army bomb-disposal experts swarmed the rural area. Police later said they had found a quantity of an accelerant — gasoline — in three vans at the site, but no explosives.

British authorities have linked Tehran to the incident, which led the U.S. to pull its bombers from RAF Fairford. Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the apparent plot was “almost certainly” directed by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, or IRGC.

Iran has denied involvement, although…

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