Five men detained near Fairford airbase, UK, are London residents

All five people detained on September 27 near the British Royal Air Force base at Fairford, which is used by the US Air Force, are British citizens, according to police.

Police said the detained men are aged between 23 and 25 and all live in London, Caliber.Az reports, citing foreign media.

They are suspected of offences under the Explosives Act and the Terrorism Act.

The investigation is being conducted by the Metropolitan Police Counter Terrorism Command, and all five remain in custody. No further details about their identities or possible motives have been released.

US President Donald Trump said in connection with the incident that the United States had been investigating the detainees, who, he claimed, “intended to cause serious damage” to the airbase.

The US used Fairford airbase in Gloucestershire, western England, as part of an operation to carry out air strikes on Iran. According to the unit’s website, the base is home to the headquarters of the US 501st Combat Support Wing and the 420th Flight Test Squadron.

The base is described as the US Air Force Global Strike Command’s preferred forward operating location for bombers in Europe.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov