RAF Fairford incident: seventh man arrested

British counter-terrorism police arrested a seventh man on Tuesday over a September 27 incident near RAF Fairford, a British military airbase used by the United States in southwest England.

Counter-Terrorism Policing said the 22-year-old British man was arrested in London on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts. Six men in their 20s had already been arrested and released on bail after three suspicious vans were stopped near the base. None has been charged.

British authorities declared the incident major and evacuated a nearby village. Officials said investigators found no explosives in the vans but recovered some petrol.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said there were “strong indications that Iran played a part”, which Tehran rejects. President Donald Trump said Monday that the United States had withdrawn all B-1 bombers from RAF Fairford because of threats he believed were linked to Tehran. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has sought to play down any specific threat, and the UK government says the base is safe.