UK spy chief says Iran is stepping up targeting of military bases

What the report says

Al Jazeera reports that the head of Britain’s domestic security service, MI5, said Iran is intensifying efforts to target sensitive military sites in the UK, following recent security incidents at airbases. In remarks made Tuesday, MI5 Director-General Ken McCallum said there had been a notable shift in Tehran’s approach this year, with a focus on harder targets such as military facilities. The comments came after UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was almost certainly behind a suspected plot involving RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, an airbase used by US bombers.

The article says British police treated the Fairford case as a major incident after three suspicious vans were seen near the base on September 27. Several men were arrested on suspicion of explosives-related offences, but all were later released on bail or without charge. Police said petrol was found in the vans, though no explosives were recovered. Al Jazeera also reported that two Latvian men were arrested for trespassing at RAF Molesworth, another site used by the US military and NATO, and were later released on bail.

UK officials have also responded with sanctions against two Iranians they say were involved in hostile activity on behalf of the Iranian state. McCallum said MI5 had made 50 arrests over the past year to disrupt Iran-linked operations, while cautioning that he did not believe the UK has seen evidence of the kind of advanced capability Iran could use elsewhere. Tehran has denied involvement in the Fairford incident and rejected the wider allegations.