The UK government attributed a security incident at RAF Fairford to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a determination that came alongside separate advisories from Washington and allied nations about hostile activities directed at Tehran. Speaking before Parliament, Andy Burnham, serving as Prime Minister, stated that the IRGC bore responsibility, with a high degree of likelihood, for what took place at the Royal Air Force installation in south-west England the previous month.
Following the incident on 27 September, every B-1 bomber assigned to the base was redeployed away from the installation — a withdrawal that unfolded while the airfield had been actively supporting ongoing operations against Iran. Burnham conveyed that UK authorities assessed the plot as one that had, in all probability, been organised and directed by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, adding that such threats on domestic soil would not be accepted.
Speaking before MPs, Burnham outlined plans to counter Iran's reliance on criminal networks, with the full toolkit of available measures set to be brought to bear against both those networks and the funding streams keeping them operational, according to a broadcast news outlet.
A joint statement — issued by the UK, the US, and the foreign ministers of 27 additional Western nations — came in response to what those governments characterised as a pattern of activity by Iran encompassing violent plots, arson, sabotage, cyber operations, and other covert methods directed at them and their partner states. Within that document, the signatories noted the UK's attribution of Iranian involvement in the RAF Fairford incident on 27 September, and the UK's further assessment that the episode reflected the IRGC's readiness to extend disruptive operations beyond its own borders through concealed networks and intermediary actors.
The joint declaration, bearing signatures from 29 nations — among them Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden — described the episode at the British airbase as part of a broader pattern of activity across Europe directed at Jewish communities, Iranian journalists, and American interests. The declaration made clear that any effort by Iran to intimidate, silence, harm, or otherwise pressure individuals on their soil through proxies or other channels would not be tolerated, and conveyed to Tehran that the signatory nations stand united in their commitment to upholding sovereignty, deepening coordination across borders, reinforcing national resilience, and ensuring accountability for those found responsible.
On Monday, Iranian officials released a statement denying any involvement in the incident at RAF Fairford, an airbase that had served as a staging point for American military operations targeting Iran. In reply to a question posed by state news agency IRNA, Ali Moussavi — holding the post of ambassador in London — told reporters that no link existed between Tehran and the incident at Fairford military base, and called on British authorities to present any evidence they had gathered in support of the allegations directed at his country.
