Two men charged under UK security law in RAF Fairford investigation
The two London men face different offences under the National Security Act. Counter-terrorism police believe an Iranian intelligence service is involved; Tehran denies involvement.
Two London men were charged on 27 October under the UK’s National Security Act in the investigation into a suspected terror incident near RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, the Guardian reported in a Press Association dispatch. Counter-terrorism police believe an Iranian intelligence service was involved, an allegation Tehran denies. The charges bring the investigation before a court while police continue their wider inquiry.
Mohmed Abdulkarim, 24, was charged with assisting a foreign intelligence service under the National Security Act 2023, according to the Guardian’s Press Association report. Nouman Essghir, also 24, faces a separate charge of entering a prohibited place for a purpose prejudicial to the UK. Both were due to appear at Westminster magistrates court on Tuesday, 27 October. Neither charge establishes that the alleged conduct occurred.
What are the charges in the RAF Fairford case?
Counter Terrorism Policing said it believed the foreign intelligence service referred to in the case was Iran’s. Reuters, carried by RTÉ, reported that the alleged conduct behind the foreign intelligence charge ran from 31 August to 28 September. It said the prohibited-place charge concerned an alleged offence on 22 August, more than a month before the arrests outside the base. The two charges therefore concern different alleged conduct and dates.
Essghir was first arrested near RAF Fairford on 27 September and arrested again on 20 October, the Guardian reported. Reuters reported that five men were arrested outside the base in the early hours of 27 September. RAF Fairford had been used by US bombers for strikes on Iran; the bombers were withdrawn on security grounds shortly after those arrests, according to Reuters. The charges announced Tuesday do not settle who directed any activity near the base.
Iran’s response and the continuing inquiry
Tehran has denied involvement in the matters under investigation, TodoAlicante reported. Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, the UK’s head of National Counter Terrorism Policing, said police had seen a range of recent incidents they believed were directed by the Iranian state. That is the police assessment; the defendants’ charges remain allegations to be tested in court.
Frank Ferguson, chief crown prosecutor for the CPS special crime and counter terrorism division, said prosecutors had decided to bring National Security Act charges against two people following the RAF Fairford investigation. He said the complex investigation continues. The Guardian also reported that a 25-year-old British-Iranian dual national arrested on suspicion of aiding Iran’s intelligence service was released without charge on that suspicion. He remains on police bail following an earlier arrest on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts.
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Sources and context
- Two men charged over alleged plot to assist Iran after RAF Fairford incidentThe Guardian, reporting Press Association
- Two men charged over RAF Fairford 'plot to aid Iran'RTÉ, reporting Reuters
- Two British men charged with aiding Iran over alleged RAF Fairford attack plotTodoAlicante
AI-assisted article checked against the listed sources. NewsJaws did not conduct interviews or attend the reported events.