Iran Revolutionary Guard ‘almost certainly’ directed RAF Fairford incident, Burnham says

Andy Burnham has said Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) was ‘almost certainly’ behind the incident at RAF Fairford last month.

In a statement given to the House of Commons on its first day back after a four-week recess, the prime minister provided a brief update on the investigation.

He said: ‘Since UNGA (the United Nations General Assembly), we have been in close contact with the US about protective security at our shared bases.’

RAF Fairford is one of those shared bases, and was used as a base for US bombers heading to the Middle East until earlier this month when they were all removed.

Burnham said Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood would share more details about the RAF Fairford incident following his statement.

However, he added: ‘I can confirm our assessment that it is highly likely to have been coordinated in Iran, almost certainly directed by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard.

‘We will not tolerate these threats on our soil. We will crack down on Iran’s use of criminal networks using our full range of powers to target them and their funding streams.

‘And we will bring further sanctions to restrict the capacity of Iran and the IRGC to do us harm.’

Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said the Iranian ambassador to the UK has been summoned to make clear ‘Britain will not tolerate threats on our soil’.

The PM previously revealed the government believed Iran played a role in the RAF Fairford incident at the end of September.

Seven men have so far been arrested and then bailed during the investigation, with none charged.

In response, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said he was ‘barking up the wrong tree’.

He wrote on social media: ‘I can confirm Iran’s belief that releasing supposed terrorists working for foreign states really says it all.’

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