La Quotidienne de Bruxelles - UK police arrest five on suspicion of preparing 'terrorist act' near air base

Armed officers detained the group in the early hours after a call to emergency services about three "suspicious vehicles which appeared to be travelling towards the air base", London's Metropolitan Police said in a statement.

US President Donald Trump told reporters they had been "looking to do big damage" at the Royal Air Force (RAF) Fairford air base in Gloucestershire, southwest England.

"We had them under view for a long time, and we got them," he said, adding the US and UK had been working together on the incident.

A local resident who said it was known locally that the base was on lockdown due to a "terror threat" alerted emergency services after seeing three vans blocking the road and a large group of men wearing hoods and balaclavas.

She told the PA news agency she found it "astonishing" it had been effectively down to a "plucky amateur" spotting unusual activity to raise the alarm.

Some 85 households in the nearby village of Whelford were advised to evacuate and army bomb disposal experts called in to examine three large white vans stopped on a rural road.

- Incident 'contained' -

"Counter Terrorism Policing can now confirm they are leading an investigation into an incident which took place overnight near RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire," the Met statement added.

Broadcast aerial footage showed a bomb disposal robot moving around the vans, two of which had their rear doors open.

Police believed the incident had been "contained" and a 400 metre (1,300 feet) cordon had been put in place.

Armed officers could be seen guarding the entrance to the base.

In March, then prime minister Keir Starmer granted permission for "defensive" US action against Iranian missile sites from two UK bases including Fairford.

New Prime Minister Andy Burnham was being kept updated on the incident, a government spokesperson said.

Burnham, who was in the northwestern city of Liverpool along with other senior ministers for his Labour Party's annual conference, thanked the police, armed forces and residents who had been asked to leave their homes "while precautionary checks are carried out".

Defence Minister Wes Streeting said in Liverpool he had been in contact with US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and the UK was "working closely with our American friends".

Asked if there was any Iranian involvement, he said it would be "irresponsible to speculate".

Gloucestershire police said earlier it had declared a "major incident" with several men arrested "on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act".

- Villagers evacuated -

Residents from Whelford were evacuated to a nearby leisure centre.

"My understanding is that the whole village was evacuated in the early hours of this morning," district councillor Tristan Wilkinson told AFP.

"Most people got in their cars, so when the police knocked on the doors and told them to go, most people were able to kind of drive away."

They were now waiting to see if the cordon would be relaxed later Sunday, as many were worried about pets which had to be left behind. "I'm hoping that the police will actually reduce the cordon quite quickly," Wilkinson said.

Villager Julian Tudsbery said it was his fellow villager who had alerted police first after they "phoned the airbase police who didn't answer the phone. It just rang out so she dialled 999".

Fairford is the UK base of the 501st Combat Support Wing, a US air force administrative support wing, which said in a statement that no US air force personnel had been involved in the incident.

"The 501st Combat Support Wing appreciates the swift response and continued support of our local law enforcement partners," it said.

"We remain in close coordination with our UK partners to help ensure the safety and security of both our military and local communities," it added.

Interior Minister Shabana Mahmood has accused Iran and Russia of using proxies to carry out criminal activities on their behalf on UK territory.

Earlier this month, reports said British military sites had been targeted by drones more than 300 times over the past year.

T.Lambrecht--LCdB