Two Men Re-Arrested Over Suspected Aid to Iran Linked to RAF Fairford
Counter-terrorism police say investigators consider Iranian state involvement highly likely in last month's incident near the Gloucestershire airbase
By AXY Politics Desk ·
Key points
- Counter-terrorism police re-arrested two men from central London, a 24-year-old UK national and a 25-year-old UK/Iranian national, on suspicion of assisting Iranian intelligence.
- Police say it is highly likely there was Iranian state involvement in last month’s incident at RAF Fairford.
- The arrests relate to section 3 of the National Security Act 2023, which covers conduct likely to materially assist a foreign intelligence service.
- The two men were previously arrested on terrorism suspicion and released on bail; five other men remain on police bail.
- No charges have been reported in the source material, and investigators are still examining the extent of Iranian involvement.
Counter-terrorism police have re-arrested two men from central London on suspicion of helping Iranian intelligence as part of the investigation into events at RAF Fairford, the Royal Air Force station in Gloucestershire, last month. A 24-year-old UK national and a 25-year-old UK/Iranian national, both from Westminster, were detained on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service in breach of the 2023 National Security Act, police said. The announcement, published on 20 October 2026, marks a new stage in an inquiry that has already involved several other arrests.
What the Police Said About the Arrests
Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, who leads national counter-terrorism policing, said investigators considered it highly likely that there was Iranian state involvement in the incident near the airbase last month. He said officers were still working out how deeply the Iranian state was involved and what its aims were. In his words, “Our investigators are continuing to examine what that level of involvement was and the ambition behind it.” The statement did not publicly describe the nature of the incident itself, and the police account in the source material does not set out what happened on the day or whether anyone was injured. That gap matters for readers, because the charges are about helping a foreign power, not about the incident alone.
The arrests are a reminder that counter-terrorism police now handle many cases that look more like state-linked espionage than traditional terrorism. Taylor’s comments suggest officers are trying to establish a picture of who acted, under whose direction, and for what purpose, rather than simply identifying a single attacker or a single device.
The Iranian State Link
British security agencies have repeatedly warned in recent years about Iranian state activity on British soil. Those warnings have covered surveillance of dissidents and journalists, criminal proxies used to carry out attacks or intimidation, and efforts to recruit people with little or no connection to the Iranian government. Because so many of these operations are run through intermediaries, investigators often focus on the people who carry out small, specific tasks, and try to work up the chain from there.
The source material says investigators regard Iranian state involvement as highly likely, but it does not say that anyone has been charged with working on behalf of Iran in a completed act, or that Tehran has responded publicly. Readers should treat the police position as an assessment in an ongoing inquiry rather than a finding that a court has yet made. Neither man has been convicted, and the suspicion against both is at the investigative stage.
Why the Charge Is Under the National Security Act
The charges fall under the National Security Act 2023, a law that Parliament passed in 2023 to update how the state tackles hostile activity by foreign powers. The Act created a set of offences aimed at foreign interference, sabotage and espionage, and it replaced parts of older legislation that many officials had described as outdated for the digital age. Its offences cover conduct that helps a foreign state’s intelligence operations, even where the person involved may not have known the full purpose.
The arrests in this case relate to section 3 of the Act. According to the source material, that section makes it an offence for a person to engage in conduct “likely to materially assist a foreign intelligence service”. In plain terms, prosecutors do not need to show that the activity succeeded or caused a specific harm. It is enough that the conduct was likely to give meaningful help to a foreign intelligence service. That lower bar is one reason police and prosecutors have used the Act in cases where the original suspicion was about terrorism but the evidence points toward state tasking.
The switch from terrorism suspicion to a National Security Act offence also reflects how investigations evolve. Early on, officers often arrest people under the broadest available powers. As evidence is gathered, the focus can shift to a more precise offence that better describes what the suspects are alleged to have done.
Earlier Arrests and the Men on Bail
The two men were arrested earlier on suspicion of terrorism offences and then released on police bail. Police bail is a process in which a suspect is released from custody while inquiries continue, usually with conditions and a date to return to a police station. Being released on bail does not mean that a person has been cleared. It means the investigation is continuing and that a decision on charges has not yet been made.
The source material says five other men who were previously arrested remain on police bail. That means the investigation has so far involved at least seven men, although the source does not say whether all of them are linked in the same way or whether the others are also suspected under the National Security Act. The re-arrest of the two men from Westminster shows that the earlier terrorism-related arrests did not end the matter, and that officers are returning to suspects with new legal grounds as the case develops.
For the public, the key point is that no one has yet been charged with any offence in the source material. Each of the men is entitled to the presumption of innocence, and their names have not been published in the source material. Court proceedings, if they occur, will be the place where the evidence is tested.
Why RAF Fairford Matters
RAF Fairford is a large Royal Air Force station in Gloucestershire, in south-west England. It has long been used by the United States Air Force as well as British forces, and it is widely known as a site with a significant military role, including for long-range aircraft. Because of its strategic importance, any security incident there attracts attention from both the military and the police.
The source material does not provide details of what happened at the base last month. What it does establish is that police believe the incident was linked to Iranian state involvement, which means that the case is being treated as a matter of national security rather than a local disturbance or a conventional crime. For ordinary people, that matters because it shapes how much public money and policing time goes into the inquiry, how the public is kept informed, and how much scrutiny the case will receive in Parliament and the courts.
It also matters for those who live and work near the base. Heightened security around strategically important sites can affect local communities, for example through increased checks, changes to access routes or additional patrols. The source material does not indicate any such changes, so readers should not assume them, but the wider context explains why authorities treat this kind of incident seriously.
What Happens Next
The next steps are likely to be decided by the police and the Crown Prosecution Service, which advises on whether there is enough evidence to bring charges. Under the process that applies to these cases, the men may be charged, released again without charge, or bailed while inquiries continue. Analysts who follow national security cases often expect investigations of this kind to take months rather than weeks, because they involve digital evidence, communications and cross-border questions.
The central unanswered question, according to the police statement, is the extent of Iranian involvement and the intention behind it. Answering that will require investigators to establish who gave instructions, what was asked of those involved, and whether the activity was aimed at a particular outcome. If evidence shows a direct state role, the case could add to a growing list of prosecutions linked to Iranian activity in Britain, and could increase pressure on the government to respond diplomatically. Officials have not, according to the source material, set out any such response.
For now, readers should watch for three things: whether the two men are charged, whether any of the five men still on bail face new action, and whether police release further detail about the nature of the incident at RAF Fairford. Each development would clarify what investigators believe happened and how the National Security Act is being applied in practice.
Questions and answers
Why were the two men re-arrested?
Police said the two men, aged 24 and 25 and from Westminster, were detained on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service in breach of the 2023 National Security Act. The arrests are linked to the investigation into events at RAF Fairford last month.
Has Iran been officially linked to the RAF Fairford incident?
Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor said investigators considered it highly likely there was Iranian state involvement in the incident. Investigators are still examining the level of that involvement and its purpose.
Have the men been charged?
The source material does not report any charges. The two men were previously arrested on suspicion of terrorism offences and released on police bail, and five other men remain on police bail.
What is the National Security Act 2023 section 3 offence?
Section 3 makes it an offence to engage in conduct likely to materially assist a foreign intelligence service. The men are suspected under this provision.
Topics: RAF Fairford, Iran, National Security Act 2023, Counter-terrorism policing, Metropolitan Police, Iranian intelligence, Westminster
Sources: The Guardian Politics