British police have arrested a person in central London with dual British and Iranian nationality for their alleged connection to the incident that occurred on Sunday near the Fairford airbase, extensively used by the United States to bomb Iran. Authorities have only disclosed the age of the detainee - 27 years old - but have also reported that they have questioned a 25-year-old British subject who was released.
The news of the arrest adds interest to the case, which began early on Sunday when five males aged between 23 and 25, all British nationals from London, were arrested while traveling to Fairford in three vans carrying what authorities have described as "military material". On Monday, they were released on bail pending a decision by the judiciary on whether to press charges against them.
Ongoing investigations are treating the case as a suspected common crime, and anti-terrorism legislation is not being applied. With the twists and turns in the inquiries, speculations about the intentions of the five detainees have been changing. While on Sunday it was assumed they were planning a terrorist attack, since Monday, the rumor has been growing that they were attempting to steal fuel, something apparently relatively common in the rural areas of Gloucestershire county, where the base is located.
The release of the detainees on Sunday had been criticized by US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, who had insisted that a "foreign actor" was involved in the incident. On Sunday, US President Donald Trump had stated, without providing further details, that the five detainees were planning to "cause great harm". Trump also mentioned that the arrest was a joint Anglo-American operation, a claim that the London government has not confirmed.
Fairford base has been used since March 9 by US heavy bombers B-52 and B-1 to carry out bombings on Iran. It is the only military facility in Europe capable of hosting these aircraft, as well as the radar-invisible B-2 bomber. The latest attacks on Iran from Fairford took place in July. At the peak of the war activity, there were 21 bombers at the base, but currently, the number has been reduced to nine.