On Sunday, British police arrested five men on suspicion of crimes related to terrorism and explosives, near an air base in England used by long-range American bombers in the war against Iran.
Units of army explosives experts are at the scene, while dozens of nearby homes have been evacuated as a precaution, while the investigation continues.
The arrests were made following information from area residents shortly after midnight, according to Richard Okon, a senior detective in Gloucestershire. The identity of the men was not revealed, and there were no indications about the possible motive behind what happened.
Vicky Evans, a senior counter-terrorism police official, confirmed: “The investigation is still in its early stages, and five men remain in custody. As expected, we are working closely with our partners to understand the circumstances of the incident.”
In addition to suspicion of explosives-related offences, the men were also arrested on suspicion of “preparing a terrorist act”, according to counter-terrorism police. Anti-terrorism laws allow British police to detain suspects for up to 14 days before bringing charges against them.
US President Donald Trump described the arrests as "remarkable" and said that the United States and Britain had been monitoring the men "for a long time."
“It was an amazing job in cooperation with Britain,” Trump told reporters in Chicago. “They were planning to cause massive damage to our base, and cooperation with the British yielded excellent results.”
He added: "We kept them under surveillance for a long time, and we were able to arrest them."
However, several British media outlets, including the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and the newspapers "The Guardian" and "The Telegraph", reported, citing sources, that the operation was not based on intelligence information, which indicates that the vigilance of the local population may have played a major role in alerting the authorities.
The US Embassy in London called on Americans in the United Kingdom to "exercise caution and pay attention to their personal security" in the wake of the arrests.
Aerial footage appeared to show a bomb-handling robot moving between three white trucks in a wooded area near the base. The back doors of two trucks were open, while large black objects appeared scattered around the place.
On Sunday evening, CNN teams near the fence surrounding the RAF Fairford base heard what appeared to be two controlled explosions from the direction of the village of Wilheford.
Earlier, Gloucestershire Police told reporters that “the Army’s Ordnance and Explosives Disposal Unit continues to examine three vehicles near” the village. CNN has contacted the British Ministry of Defense for comment.
The Daily Mail published a video clip that it said showed several people being arrested at the scene of the incident during the early hours of Sunday morning, local time. They appeared to be naked from the upper part of their bodies, with their arms behind their backs.
A resident of the area told CNN that she heard helicopters flying over the village of Wilheford at 2 a.m., and bomb squad vehicles arrived about an hour later.
The village is located near the RAF Fairford base, which US B-1 bombers used to launch strikes on Iran, and is a forward operating location for the US Air Force's Global Strike Command, tasked with managing long-range strikes.
A US Air Force spokesman in Fairford, where the 501st Combat Support Wing is based, told CNN: "For operational security reasons, we will not discuss specific procedures to protect forces."
The spokesman added that the unit "remains vigilant and will take appropriate measures to ensure the safety and security of American service members, civilians, contractors and their families."
The Prime Minister receives updates on the incident
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham on Sunday thanked emergency services for their assistance and local residents for their understanding while “precautionary checks are carried out.”
Burnham previously wrote on the “X” platform, Twitter: “I know that today’s incident near the RAF base in Fairford will cause great concern among local residents, and among many people following developments around the country.”
Earlier, Sunday, a government spokesman said that the Prime Minister was receiving updates on the incident.
The spokesman added: “We are grateful to the emergency services, who acted quickly to detain a number of suspects and take action to keep the community safe.”
He continued: "It would be inappropriate to comment further while the investigations are still ongoing."
British Defense Secretary Wes Streeting said: “We can rest assured that this matter is being addressed, which is exactly why our emergency response teams and armed forces remain on standby 24/7.”
The British PA Media news agency quoted Streeting as saying that the incident is a reminder of "the threats this country faces on a daily basis."
A local resident, who requested to remain anonymous, told PA Media that security measures around the base have been tightened in recent weeks.
He added: "They put heavy vehicles, very heavy, at all the gates... very large tractors and things like that."
Another resident told CNN that the base appeared to have been on a security lockdown recently. He added: "It was like a ghost town all week."
In March, the British government granted the US Air Force permission to use the Fairford base to carry out strikes on Iranian missile sites that were being used to attack ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
Months later, Britain said that its armed forces were ready to protect the country from any attack, after the Iranian Revolutionary Guard issued a warning about allowing American bombers to fly from British bases.
