A British national was charged with assisting a foreign intelligence service in connection with an alleged attempted sabotage incident at RAF Fairford last month in the United Kingdom, while another was hit with a national security offense.
Mohmed Abdulkarim, 24, and Nouman Essghir, 24, both British nationals from London, were charged Tuesday under the National Security Act 2023. Abdulkarim was charged with “assisting a foreign intelligence service,” with prosecutors alleging he was “engaging in conduct that was likely to materially assist a foreign intelligence service in carrying out U.K.-related activities.”
Essghir was charged with the national security offense after he “approached or was in the vicinity of” a prohibited place, while knowing or ought to have known his conduct was “prejudicial to the safety or interests of the United Kingdom.”
The foreign intelligence service in question was revealed by authorities to be Iranian.
“We have seen a range of incidents in recent months that we believe have been directed by the Iranian state, and as the director general of MI5 said just the other week, we are working together to intervene, identify and respond to that threat,” said Laurence Taylor, head of National Counter Terrorism Policing and assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Service.
“The public can help us with this, and as always, I would urge them to report anything that they’re worried about — those reports can and do make a difference,” he told reporters.
Officials, including U.K. Prime Minister Andy Burnham, have previously said the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was strongly suspected to be behind last month’s incident, but the new charges are the first time this has been submitted in court.
On Sept. 27, five men were arrested a short distance outside of the sensitive military base after a local farmer reported three suspicious vans in the area. Police mounted a major response, and the five men at the scene were arrested on explosives charges. A bomb disposal robot was deployed to examine the vans, but police later said only petrol was found, not bombs. The five men were released on bail soon after, prompting heavy criticism.
Essghir was one of the five people arrested outside the base Sept. 27, then promptly released on bail. He was re-arrested last week.
In total, six people are still out on bail.
UK NATIONAL ARRESTED IN CONNECTION WITH RAF INVESTIGATION
Burnham told the BBC shortly after the incident that there were “strong indications that Iran played a part in what happened over the weekend at RAF Fairford.” The Iranian Embassy in London fervently rejected the accusation, saying it “categorically rejects and strongly condemns the recent unfounded and malicious speculations” of Iranian involvement.
Though President Donald Trump has said the United States decided to move its heavy bombers from RAF Fairford over security concerns, Burnham continues to insist the base is secure.