US withdraws B-1 bomber aircraft from UK’s Fairford base amid Iran fears

The abrupt redeployment to the US comes after several ‘Terrorism-related’ arrests were made outside RAF Fairford.The United States has made the abrupt decision to withdraw its bombers from the Royal Air Force (RAF) base Fairford in the western part of the United Kingdom, citing concerns about a potential attack.Media reports emerged on Sunday that an urgent redeployment was under way, with B-1 bombers leaving RAF Fairford for the US.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3New aircraft carrier, 10,000 US troops: Is the Iran war about to escalate?list 2 of 3Iran says Hormuz to remain closed until US meets conditionslist 3 of 3War on Iran: Is escalation more likely than a deal?end of listRoughly a dozen such aircraft had been based at RAF Fairford prior to the sudden departure.“While operational security precluded us from confirming the movement of our assets and forces in real-time, 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,” a Pentagon spokesperson told the Reuters news agency.It is unclear precisely what prompted the withdrawal, which comes as the US and Israel remain embroiled in a war against Iran.RAF Fairford has served as a stopping point for US bombers participating in the war, which began more than seven months ago, on February 28.But the base, located roughly 160km (100 miles) west of London, has been rumoured to be the target of a “terror” plot involving Iran.On September 27, UK authorities arrested five men on suspicion of plotting to plant explosives near the base.Iran has denied any such scheme, and the men were released without charge a day later. Investigators discovered petrol, but no explosive devices, in their vans. Still, officials in the UK say they remain under investigation.On Thursday, British police also announced they had arrested a 25-year-old UK-Iranian dual national in London on suspicion of plotting an attack against the airbase.