- Trump says US withdrew all B-1 bombers from RAF Fairford
- He says threats were "linked to Iran"; Tehran denies involvement
- Downing Street insists the base is safe
- Six people arrested over incident released on bail
US PRESIDENT Donald Trump said on Monday that the United States had withdrawn all its B-1 bombers from RAF Fairford because of threats he believed were linked to Iran, as the UK government insisted the base was safe.
The Pentagon confirmed on Sunday that the bombers had left the base in south-west England, which the US has used to launch strikes on Iran.
"There were some threats," Trump told reporters at the White House.
"And rather than tempting the enemy – we'll capture the enemy and beat the enemy, but why should we leave them there? So we moved them around a little bit, not very far."
He said the US knew who was behind the threat.
'US bombing missions from RAF Fairford have brought war to their doorstep'
"We actually know the people that made the threat," he said. "They would be linked to Iran."
Trump declined to comment on a report that the threat involved attack drones, saying: "I can't tell you that but if they did they'll suffer greatly."
UK insists base is safe
Asked whether the base was safe, Prime Minister Andy Burnham's official spokesman said: "Yes."
"We have tried and tested approaches to defend our bases around the country and throughout the world," he told reporters.
In its statement, the Pentagon said: "We can acknowledge now that all US bombers that were deployed to RAF Fairford have re-deployed to their home stations in the United States."
It added that "operational security precluded us from confirming the movement of our assets and forces in real-time".
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed "confidence in the security of all of our bases" and said the UK had been highly cooperative with the investigation.
"They couldn't be more cooperative," he said.
Two US officials told the New York Times that the bombers were moved after commanders received new threat information about an Iran-backed plot. One said the information was linked to warnings that first surfaced three weeks ago, but the situation had become urgent in the past 24 hours, the paper reported.
The investigation so far
Police were called to the area on September 27 after a farmer in the village of Whelford, near the base, reported seeing three vans blocking a road and a group of masked men fleeing the scene.
Five men, all in their mid-20s, were arrested at the time, and a British-Iranian national was detained later. All six have since been released on bail.
Counter-terrorism police said no explosives were found in the vans, but "a quantity of petrol was recovered".
Arrest in Fairford investigation as Iran summons British ambassador over plot claims
British media have reported that police were alerted to the incident by one of the initial suspects. Police have not commented on the reports.
Speculation about the motive has ranged from a terror threat to fuel theft, with UK energy prices hitting record highs this week.
Burnham has said there were "strong indications that Iran played a part". Iran's embassy in London said it "categorically rejects and strongly condemns" suggestions of Tehran's involvement.
Trump had previously criticised British authorities for releasing the arrested men on bail.
Why Fairford matters
The UK gave the US permission in March to use Fairford for "specific defensive operations into Iran". US bombers and other aircraft have since been seen taking off from and landing at the base, which is the only airbase on mainland Britain used for this purpose.
Security at the base has reportedly been increased.
(With inputs from agencies)
