LONDON — There are strong indications Tehran played a part in a security incident outside a British air base that U.S.forces use to facilitate strikes on Iran, Prime Minister Andy Burnham said Wednesday.
Burnham said he had chaired an emergency security meeting this week after the incident, which unfolded in the early hours of Sunday.Five men, all British nationals, were arrested on suspicion of terror and explosives offenses and were released on bail earlier this week.“We have been waiting to confirm what we could say, but we can now confirm our belief that Iran played a part,” he said in an interview with Sky News.
”This remains, though, a complex and very serious police investigation, so I can’t say any more at this stage,” he added.The British Parliament is in recess, but Burnham said he “wouldn’t hesitate” to recall lawmakers “should that be necessary.”Iran has denied any involvement in the incident.“The embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in London categorically rejects and strongly condemns the recent unfounded and malicious speculations published by some British individuals and media outlets attempting to link Iran to arrest of five suspects in the vicinity of RAF Fairford base,” the Iranian Embassy in Britain said in a statement on X on Monday.So far, no charges have been filed against the men, all in their 20s and from London, who were arrested after three vehicles were seen moving toward RAF Fairford, a British air force station about 90 minutes west of London.Counterterrorism police later took over the case after a major incident was declared and dozens of homes were evacuated, disrupting life in the normally quiet, rural community of the Cotswolds.Police declared a major incident and evacuated residents from their homes in Whelford, a village about 1 mile from RAF Fairford.David Bown / Getty ImagesResidents were allowed to return home Monday.In an update Tuesday, the head of counterterrorism policing, Laurence Taylor, sa...