British prosecutors charged two London men under the National Security Act following an incident near the air base used by U.S. bombers.
British prosecutors charged two London men on Tuesday under the National Security Act over an alleged Iranian plot targeting RAF Fairford, the English air base used by American heavy bombers to strike targets in Iran.
Mohmed Abdulkarim, 24, faces charges of assisting a foreign intelligence service in September and engaging in conduct likely to materially assist a foreign intelligence service in carrying out U.K.-related activities, CBS News reported. British counterterrorism police believe the foreign country Abdulkarim was assisting was Iran, according to Fox News. The Crown Prosecution Service charged 24-year-old Nouman Essghir with a national security offense after he approached or entered the vicinity of a prohibited place for a purpose prejudicial to the safety or interests of the United Kingdom. Both men are British citizens who reside in London.
Both defendants were scheduled to appear Tuesday at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London. Frank Ferguson, head of the Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division at the Crown Prosecution Service, said prosecutors decided to bring charges following a complex counterterrorism investigation. Ferguson said, “We will continue to work closely with our partners as this complex investigation continues.” The prosecution service emphasized that the formal charges are not findings of guilt and that both men have the right to a fair trial.
Investigation so far
The charges represent the latest development in an inquiry that began after officials investigated a weekend security incident outside the perimeter in western England. Counterterrorism officers arrested Abdulkarim and Essghir last week on suspicion of assisting Iran’s intelligence service in a plot targeting the Gloucestershire base. Officers also detained a 25-year-old British-Iranian dual national last week under the National Security Act, but investigators later released him on bail pending further investigation.
The September incident at RAF Fairford
The investigation stems from events outside RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire during the early hours of Sept. 27, when police stopped and arrested five men. Armed police officers and bomb-disposal teams evacuated residents from their homes in a nearby area while conducting searches around the airfield. Investigators examined three vans that had been driven by the suspects and parked close to a base entrance, locating containers of gasoline but no explosive devices.
Police released all five of those initial suspects on bail, though authorities noted that they remain under investigation and continuous monitoring. On Tuesday, police confirmed that six men remain free on bail in connection with the Fairford case. That group includes four London residents in their 20s who were arrested on Sept. 27, as well as two other individuals detained later, including the 25-year-old dual national arrested on Oct. 1.
Base operations and Iranian response
RAF Fairford has operated as an essential European station for American heavy bombers for many years. During the war with Iran, the U.S. military used the airfield to launch offensive strikes on targets across the Islamic Republic. Following the September security incident, the U.S. Air Force withdrew all of its B-1 bombers from the installation, returning about a dozen aircraft to their home stations in the United States on security grounds.
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the U.K. government believes Iran played a part in the incident outside the base. Iranian officials have stated repeatedly that military installations used to launch attacks against Iran are considered legitimate targets.
The Iranian Embassy in London denied involvement in the matter, saying in an earlier statement that the government “categorically rejects and strongly condemns the recent unfounded and malicious speculations published by some British individuals and media outlets attempting to link Iran” to the incident. Abdulkarim and Essghir were scheduled to face their initial court proceedings at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday.
