Iran has denied any involvement in an alleged plot targeting a British airbase used by US bombers to launch strikes against Tehran, challenging accusations by the UK government and demanding evidence to substantiate its claims.
Iran's ambassador to Britain, Ali Mousavi, rejected the allegations during a meeting with British Middle East minister Stephen Doughty at the Foreign Office on Monday, according to Iran's official IRNA news agency.
Mousavi insisted that Tehran had no role in the suspected plot targeting RAF Fairford on 27 September and urged British authorities to refrain from making accusations that he said lacked evidence.
He called on London to provide any documents or evidence supporting its allegations, warning against what he described as "hasty positions and unsubstantiated accusations".
The ambassador also reiterated Iran's willingness to cooperate with British authorities in establishing the facts surrounding the incident.
Mousavi stressed Iran's commitment to international law, respect for national sovereignty and non-interference in other countries' internal affairs.
He added that Tehran's condemnation of military attacks launched against Iran from British bases did not imply any involvement in the Fairford incident.
The denial came as British Prime Minister Andy Burnham accused Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of likely directing the suspected plot and announced further sanctions against Tehran.
Addressing Parliament on Monday, Burnham said British authorities assessed that the operation was "highly likely" to have been coordinated in Iran and "almost certainly" directed by the IRGC.
"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 (IRGC)," Burnham told lawmakers.
US bombers have used RAF Fairford to carry out strikes against Iran. Last week, US President Donald Trump said a threat linked to Iran had prompted the withdrawal of the aircraft from the base.
US officials told Reuters that the suspected plot involved plans to launch a drone attack.
Five British men were arrested near RAF Fairford in the early hours of 27 September on suspicion of terrorism and explosives offences.
Police detained the men near the base in three vans but later released them without charge on police bail under stringent conditions.
Police said petrol had been discovered in the vehicles, but no viable explosives were found.
Two other men, including a British-Iranian national, were also arrested and later released.
British counterterrorism police are continuing their investigation, including examining whether a foreign state was involved.
Burnham warned that Britain would take further action against what he described as Iranian-linked criminal networks.
"We will not tolerate these threats on our soil," he said.
"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."
Britain has previously accused Tehran of involvement in plots on British soil, allegations Iran has repeatedly rejected.
In July, London used new powers aimed at countering state-sponsored activity to ban support for the IRGC and a linked group accused of involvement in attacks targeting locations associated with Jewish and Israeli communities, as well as Persian-language media.
Iran has dismissed allegations linking it to the Fairford incident as "unfounded and malicious speculations", insisting that British authorities must produce evidence rather than level accusations against Tehran.