Two British men charged with assisting Iran's intelligence service in RAF Fairford case

London police have charged two British nationals with offences under the National Security Act as part of the investigation into a suspected terror incident near RAF Fairford. Mohmed Abdulkarim, 24, is scheduled to appear at Westminster magistrates court on Tuesday on a charge of assisting a foreign intelligence service. He will be tried alongside Nouman Essghir, also 24, who faces a charge of entering a prohibited place for a purpose prejudicial to the United Kingdom after being arrested at the scene on 27 September and re-arrested on 20 October.

Counter Terrorism Policing (CTP) indicated that the foreign intelligence service involved is believed to be Iran's. Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, head of national counter-terrorism policing, said: "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. The public can help us with this, and I would urge them to report anything that they’re worried about – those reports can and do make a difference."

A 25-year-old UK-Iranian dual national arrested on 20 October on suspicion of aiding Iran’s intelligence service has been released without charge but remains on police bail after an earlier arrest on 1 October for suspected terrorist preparation. Five additional men arrested during the inquiry remain on bail.

Frank Ferguson, chief crown prosecutor for the CPS special crime and counter-terrorism division, stated: "The Crown Prosecution Service has decided to prosecute two individuals with National Security Act offences following a Counter Terrorism Policing investigation into a high-profile incident involving RAF Fairford. We will continue to work closely with our partners as this complex investigation continues."