US withdraws B-1 bombers from Fairford Air Force Base in the UK

(Deutsche Welle Chinese website) A week after several men were detained at Royal Air Force Base Fairford in the United Kingdom on suspicion of planning terrorist attacks, a U.S. Pentagon official announced that the United States has withdrawn its B-1 bombers from the base.

On October 4, the aircraft monitoring website showed that the B-1 aircraft had flown away from the British base.

"While we have previously been unable to disclose the movements of our assets and forces due to operational security concerns, we can now confirm that all U.S. bombers deployed at RAF Fairford have been redeployed back to bases in the United States," a Pentagon spokesman wrote in a statement.

Twelve B-1 bombers were previously stationed at RAF Fairford. The British government has previously allowed the Pentagon to dispatch from Fairford base to attack Iranian missile launch sites that threaten ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

What do we know about this suspected terrorist attack?

On Sunday, a resident near RAF Fairford called the police after seeing a group of men in several vans engaging in "suspicious" activity.

Investigators cordoned off the area and called in bomb squads. However, no explosives were found in the vehicle. Five British citizens arrested in connection with the incident have since been released on bail.

On Wednesday, British Prime Minister Burnham said there were "strong indications" that Iran was linked to an alleged plot to target the base.

Iran dismissed the accusations as baseless and summoned the British ambassador to Tehran to discuss the matter.

The joint military strikes against Iran started by the United States and Israel at the end of February this year have lasted for more than seven months. Iran has repeatedly threatened and actually blocked the Strait of Hormuz to restrict global energy and commodity transportation, adding more complex factors to this conflict. The vast differences in the goals and bottom lines of all parties involved in the war have also led to numerous negotiations reaching a deadlock.