Authorities evacuated 85 households in Whelford, about a mile from RAF Fairford, early Sunday after authorities were alerted to suspicious vehicles. Police arrested five men on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act but have not confirmed the threat’s nature or source.
A resident told UK media she alerted emergency services after seeing three vans blocking a road near the village and men wearing hoods and balaclavas. Broadcast aerial footage showed a bomb-disposal robot moving around the vans. Evacuees were taken to a leisure centre in nearby Cirencester, while a police cordon remained in place.
In March, Britain allowed the United States to use RAF Fairford for specific defensive operations into Iran aimed at destroying Iranian missiles. US bombers and other aircraft have since been seen taking off from and landing at the airfield. The base has also been used for US military operations during the Gulf War and the 2003 Iraq War.
