How did the RAF Fairford incident go from 'suspected bomb plot' to police bail?
Detectives are entering a vital stage of the investigation, with many of the public's questions unanswered, the BBC's Daniel Sandford writes.
First reported 1 day ago · latest update 1 hour ago
On Sunday morning, the world was watching as drama unfolded in the village of Whelford.
Before sunrise, residents were called from their beds and told to evacuate as a huge police operation unfolded in the village, which is next door to RAF Fairford, a base used by the US Air Force.
One villager managed to take a picture of five men sitting on the ground, stripped to the waist, handcuffed and under armed guard.
They were arrested for offences under the Explosives Act. But now counter-terrorism detectives say no explosives were found in their three vans, only an "accelerant" - petrol.
What some newspapers called a "suspected bomb plot" ended in the suspects being bailed. So what was going on?
The US President Donald Trump asserted that the men had been trying to do "big damage" to the base. "We had them under view for a long time, and we got them," he declared.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said: "What could have happened in the UK over the weekend is a very serious situation. It's one that clearly involved the hands of a foreign actor."
But in a veiled criticism of that, the head Counter Terrorism Policing in the UK Laurence Taylor said that the worry that a lot of people had been experiencing had been "heightened by the international commentary".
He also defended his detectives' decision to give the suspects police bail with "very strict conditions". This had been criticised by President Trump.
Taylor said it was an "investigative decision and one which is grounded in experience and strategy".
This suggests there were good tactical reasons for releasing the men on bail, perhaps to encourage their cooperation.
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How did the RAF Fairford incident go from 'suspected bomb plot' to police bail?
Detectives are entering a vital stage of the investigation, with many of the public's questions unanswered, the BBC's Daniel Sandford writes.
1 hour agoRAF Fairford live updates: police investigate Iran link to suspected bomb plot
Five men arrested over terrorism offences after explosives found near baseThe defence secretary, Wes Streeting, has spoken to the media from the Labour party conference this morning about the incident near RAF Fairford.Streeting said he was grateful for the vigilance of the members of the public who are thought to have helped alert the emergency services to the suspected terror plot.Thank you to that member of the public. She has done exactly what we would hope that someone in that extraordinary situation would do.I’m really grateful to her – I think she acted, by her own admission, quickly a…
1 day ago · Yohannes LoweFarmer who alerted police to RAF Fairford suspected bomb plot says there was ‘no follow-up’
Woman who spotted suspicious vans and masked men says authorities did not contact her after five men were arrestedA farmer who claims to have alerted the police to a suspected terrorist bomb plot at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire has said she has had “no follow-up at all” from the authorities.The woman told reporters on Monday that she did not see herself as a hero for having reported vans blocking a road near the base while on her way back from a party. Continue reading...
1 day ago · Jamie Grierson and Press AssociationQuestions remain over Iran’s link to alleged RAF Fairford bomb plot
Tehran has been trying to step up attacks on targets in the west but its track record has been mixedInvestigators may be some way from determining exactly what led five men with three vans to a village just outside RAF Fairford in the small hours of Sunday – but the fact they have all been released on bail without immediate charge suggests they are not deemed to pose a serious and violent threat.In a moment where wider geopolitical tensions mean external threats are perceived to be close, the question of whether Iran had a hand in the alleged plot remains open. Nonetheless, the bailing of the…
1 day ago · Dan Sabbagh Defence and security editorWas Iran involved in suspected bomb plot at RAF base being used by US? What police said
British counter-terrorism police are investigating a potential Iranian link to a bomb scare at a US air base. Five men were detained on suspicion of planning a ‘terrorist act’ after suspicious vans were reported near RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire.
1 day ago