Rubio: ‘Foreign actor’ clearly behind RAF Fairford plot
Prime Minister Andy Burnham chaired a Cobra emergency meeting on 28 September as some residents evacuated from the village of Whelford began returning to their homes.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said the suspected terror plot being investigated near RAF Fairford “clearly involves the hands of a foreign actor”, in an interview with Fox News on 28 September, the BBC reported.
Rubio said: “I think it ties us to the reality here, and that is we are dealing with elements in the world, and in the case of Iran, for example, who have openly threatened to attack American interests globally.” He did not provide evidence or further details, and Tehran has strongly denied any involvement.
“What could have happened in the UK over the weekend is a very serious situation,” Rubio added, saying more information would emerge “in the days to come”.
The Iranian embassy in London said it “categorically rejects and strongly condemns” what it called “unfounded and malicious speculations” linking Iran to the incident.
On 28 September, Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, head of Counter Terrorism Policing, said officers were considering all angles, including that “this may be activity committed by proxies, or individuals either knowingly or unknowingly, working on behalf of a foreign state”.
Speaking at the White House the same day, Donald Trump said of the decision to bail the five arrested men: “I will tell you, I would have said ’Don’t let them have bail’. I’m surprised that they released them. I wouldn’t have done that.”
Prime Minister Andy Burnham chaired a Cobra emergency meeting on 28 September and urged people “not to speculate while the authorities establish the full facts”.
Residents of the nearby village of Whelford have now been told they can return home. One local said most people had gone back, but police had told them to stay inside and not take photographs. “I haven’t gone home as I want to wait until I know more about what the hell happened, as it feels super dodge to me,” the resident said.
Local councillor Tristan Wilkinson said the mood among residents was a mixture of “confusion” and “weariness”, adding: “I don’t think there’s going to be anything normal about Whelford for quite a considerable amount of time.”
In the village of Fairford, butcher Andrew Butler said “people are worried, a bit panicky”.
A heavily guarded police cordon remained in place around RAF Fairford on 29 September. Counter Terrorism Policing said the five men, aged between 23 and 25 and from London, remain under investigation, and their bail is “subject to stringent conditions on their movement and contact with others”.
The men were arrested at the weekend after three suspicious vehicles were reported near the airbase, used by US forces for strikes against Iran. Dozens of homes were evacuated as a precaution before the men were released on bail.