SOURCE: BBC
Aerial footage shows wheeled robot near white vans
Five men who were arrested on suspicion of explosive and terrorism offences after a major incident was declared at an RAF airbase in the west of England are due to be released on police bail.
Three vans were spotted near RAF Fairford in the early hours of Sunday morning and the police were called, before a huge police operation in Gloucestershire saw the area put under cordon.
Head of Counter Terrorism Policing (CTP) Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor said on Monday that officers were exploring “multiple lines of inquiry”, including whether proxies or individuals knowingly or unknowingly working on behalf of a foreign state were involved.
The five men are all UK nationals in their 20s from London.
Here is a summary of what we know so far.
What happened?
Gloucestershire Police said it received a call about “three suspicious vehicles” travelling towards RAF Fairford at 00:45 BST on Sunday.
Five men were later arrested by its officers near Whelford, a village which lies directly east of the base.
A bomb disposal team was also deployed to the village to examine a number of vehicles, police said, around which a 400m (1,312ft) cordon is in place.
Aerial pictures showed a remote-controlled robot approaching two stationary white vans in a wooded area, though its use has not been confirmed by police.
CTP is leading the investigation into the incident. The BBC understands the operation was not intelligence led.
A cordon remains in place around the scene as counter-terrorism investigators continue their work.
Counter-terror police said the three vehicles had been subject to “extensive examination” with support from military and forensic experts.
RAF Fairford is located in the Cotswolds, about four miles (6.4km) south of the town of Fairford, which sits along the River Coln.
The base shares a long history with the American military, and has recently been used by US warplanes as a staging post for defensive strikes on Iran.
The US military said it was “working closely” with its UK counterparts “to monitor this situation, minimise impacts and ensure the safety of US personnel, their families, and the local community”.
The five men were initially detained on suspicion of committing offences under the Explosives Act before being further arrested on suspicion of preparation of a terrorist act.
Counter Terrorism Policing said they were UK nationals aged between 23 and 25, all from London. They have not been named.
They are being released on police bail “subject to stringent conditions on their movement and contact with others” as they remain under investigation, Assistant Commissioner Taylor has said.
US President Donald Trump earlier said those arrested were “looking to do big damage”, adding: “We had them under view for a long time, and we got them.”
BBC Your Voice has received an image purporting to show the moment five men were arrested.
It showed detained men in Whelford, about 350m (1,148ft) from runway access at Crash Gate 6A at RAF Fairford.
The BBC has been unable to verify the original source but BBC Verify has geolocated the image and confirmed it appeared to be authentic.
BBC Verify has also been looking into the branding of the three white vans parked near RAF Fairford.
A verified image shows a red logo on one of the vans reading “Fuel 2You”, with a mobile phone number also visible.
When contacted by the BBC, the number went straight to an automated Lycamobile voice message system.
However, BBC Verify contacted Fuel2U, a company with a similar name which delivers diesel across the UK. A spokesperson told us the vans were “nothing to do” with the company.
“From our perspective, it’s a very unfortunate coincidence,” they said. “It’s spelled differently. The phone number is different. The branding is different entirely, so it’s not a historic version of our brand.”
They added that “all of our vans are present and accounted for” and “even if it was one of our vans that was stolen, it would have our logo on it. That is not our logo”.
The company also confirmed it was a newly-launched business and had never used the name “Fuel 2You” in any previous form. Its branding is also accented green, rather than red.
A resident who called 999 to report the three white vans in Whelford village said it was “pure luck” that she spotted the vehicles.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme the woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, said she arrived home to find the driveway and road blocked and saw a “large group of hooded and masked men”.
“When they saw me they ran ahead of me – some into the field and some towards the neighbouring village of Kempsford. I then realised that something highly unusual was taking place,” she added.
The woman told the programme she called the Ministry of Defence police at RAF Fairford but received no answer. She then rang 999 at 01:36 BST and said “within 10 minutes the village was full of armed police”.
“I believe that my 999 call foiled whatever plans they had.”
“I am absolutely staggered that it was left to me as a member of the public to see and report this,” she said.
“Someone really dropped the ball on this.”
Another resident described the moment he said he saw police apprehend the suspects.
Jeff – who did not give his surname – told the BBC he heard “shouting outside his front door”, although he could not be sure where it came from.
He said he then looked out of his window and saw “people being held by police outside”.
