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The UK foreign secretary has formally summoned the Iranian ambassador to communicate a clear message: Britain will not accept any threats on its territory following a security incident at RAF Fairford last month. Ed Miliband condemned Iran’s ongoing efforts to jeopardize the UK’s safety through its criminal networks, proxy agents, and state-sponsored malign activities, labeling these actions as unacceptable.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham addressed Parliament, stating that the event at the Gloucestershire airbase was “almost certainly directed by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard.” However, Seyed Ali Mousavi, Iran’s ambassador to the UK, denied Iran’s involvement and expressed Tehran’s willingness to collaborate with British authorities in the investigation.
In response, the Foreign Office imposed sanctions on two Iranian individuals, including the head of Iran’s counterespionage operations, enforcing travel bans and freezing their assets. Burnham also suggested that further sanctions might be implemented given Iran’s suspected involvement. Meanwhile, the UK joined 28 other nations—including the US, Canada, Australia, France, and Germany—in jointly condemning violent actions attributed to Iran. Their statement highlighted Tehran’s engagement in “lethal plotting, arson, sabotage, cyber-attacks, and other hybrid activities,” while also affirming the UK’s position on Iran’s role in the RAF Fairford incident.
Following the events of 27 September, a major police operation was launched after reports of three suspicious vehicles near the airbase. Authorities evacuated dozens of residents from the nearby village of Whelford and established a large security cordon around RAF Fairford. Seven men, all in their twenties, have been arrested and subsequently bailed in connection with the incident, but no charges have been filed to date. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is scheduled to provide Parliament with an update on the situation. Despite the incident and the removal of approximately a dozen US B-1 bombers from the base to their home locations, Downing Street has reassured the public of the airbase’s continued safety.
RAF Fairford has served as a strategic forward operating base for the US Air Force for many years. Recently, the US has deployed B-1 and B-52 bombers from this location for missions in the Middle East, following UK approval of the American request to utilize the base for defensive operations against Iran. In July, Iran declared that any base involved in aggression against its territory “constitutes a legitimate target” for its forces, underscoring ongoing tensions in the region
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