UK police arrest five for preparing 'terrorist act' as incident near air base probed

Fairford, United Kingdom: British counter-terrorism police were Sunday probing "a major" incident near a base used by the US air force after arresting five men on suspicion of "preparing a terrorist act", police said.

Armed officers detained the group in the early hours after a call to emergency services about three "suspicious vehicles which appeared to be travelling towards the air base", London's Metropolitan Police said in a statement.

The suspects were initially held near the Royal Air Force (RAF) Fairford air base in Gloucestershire, southwest England, on suspicion of explosives offences.

Some 85 households in the nearby village of Whelford were advised to evacuate and army bomb disposal experts called in to examine three vans stopped on a rural road.

"Counter Terrorism Policing can now confirm they are leading an investigation into an incident which took place overnight near RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire," the Met statement added.

Broadcast aerial footage showed a bomb disposal robot on a rural road moving around the vans, two of which had their rear doors open.

Police believed the incident had been "contained" and a 400 metre (1,300 feet) cordon had been put in place.

Armed officers could be seen guarding the entrance to the base.

New Prime Minister Andy Burnham was being kept updated on the incident, a government spokesperson said.

"We are grateful to the emergency services, who have acted quickly to detain several suspects and put measures in place to keep the community safe," the spokesperson said.

"It would be inappropriate to comment further whilst investigations are ongoing."

Defence Minister Wes Streeting thanked "emergency and specialist teams" deployed to the scene.

"We can be reassured that this is being dealt with," he said on X.

Gloucestershire Police said earlier it had declared a "major incident" with several men arrested "on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act".

Villagers evacuated

Residents were evacuated to a nearby leisure centre, police said.

Villager Julian Tudsbery said he was woken and advised to leave at about 7:00 am (0600 GMT) by police "banging on the door".

He said a fellow villager had alerted police in the middle of the night after spotting the vans.

"They phoned the airbase police, who didn't answer the phone. It just rang out so she dialled 999," he told the BBC.

Fairford is the UK base of the 501st Combat Support Wing, a US air force administrative support wing, which said in a statement that no US air force personnel had been involved in the incident.

"The 501st Combat Support Wing appreciates the swift response and continued support of our local law enforcement partners," it said.

"We remain in close coordination with our UK partners to help ensure the safety and security of both our military and local communities," it added.

The MP for the area, Roz Savage, described the situation as "worrying".

"I have contacted the police for further updates and I've been told that it is believed the incident is contained," she said on X.