Make New York Post a Preferred Source Material found in terror suspects’ vans during a raid near a US-used air base in the UK was “not viable explosives,” according to police, as all five were released on bail on Monday.
The suspects, all British nationals age 23 to 25 and living in London, remain under investigation after they were stopped early Sunday morning close to Royal Air Force Fairford, a base 90 miles southwest of London used by the US for missions in the Middle East.
Testing has now revealed that the items found in the vans were not explosive materials, the Daily Mail reported, citing law enforcement sources.
Armed police were called after a local farmer returning home from a party spotted the three suspicious-looking white vans on a country lane near the base.
After spotting that the company lettering and a phone number on the side appeared to be fake, she said she saw several “Middle Eastern-looking men,” some with masks and balaclavas, scatter and run through the fields in the direction of the base.
A dramatic picture later showed the five men sat in handcuffs on the ground next to armed cops, stripped to the waist over fears about possible suicide vests.
But Britain’s top counter-terrorism officer, Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, announced their release on Monday, while insisting authorities were still looking into possible involvement from a hostile state such as Iran.
“To be very clear, this does not mean that the investigation is over. They are subject to stringent conditions on their movement and contact with others,” Taylor told a press conference in London.
“They absolutely remain under investigation as we explore multiple lines of enquiry,” he added.
Iran said Monday it “categorically rejects” any involvement in the suspected plot, with its London embassy branding as “unfounded and malicious speculations” any attempt to link Tehran to the arrests.
“The circulation of such fabricated speculations, particularly in the aftermath of the criminal acts of aggression committed by the United States and the Israeli regime against the Iranian people, will serve no purpose other than to fuel Iranophobia propaganda in the UK,” the statement continued, threatening legal measures if necessary.
A cordon remained in place on Monday around RAF Fairford, which was chosen by the US for long-range missions due to its extended two-mile runway, which was reinforced to support B-1 and B-52 bombers.
All 85 homes in the nearby village of Whelford were evacuated in the wake of the arrests, as a more than 400-yard cordon was set up around the three vehicles.
President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the suspects had been on the US’s radar for some time, with reports locally stating that security had been stepped up around the base in recent days.
