Nigel Farage has drawn criticism for falsely suggesting that the five men arrested on suspicion of terror offences near RAF Fairford were Iranian.
The Reform UK leader suggested that the incident at RAF Fairford, in Gloucestershire, could be linked to the small boats crossings in a post on Sunday, hours after five men were arrested on suspicion of explosives offences and terrorism after three vans were found near the airbase which is used by the US.
He said in a post on X: “I have been warning both in and out of Parliament for many months about Iranian agents coming into the UK via small boats across the Channel. We deserve to be told the truth about the Fairford bomb plotters’ identities.”
Mr Farage shared a video on Monday then reaffirming his concerns that Iran was using small boats crossing the channel to get their operatives to the UK, despite police warnings against speculation.
He said: “Over the course of this year, I had intelligence that told me that the Iranian regime was using the boats crossing the Channel to get their operatives into Britain. That literally we were allowing people to come in who may well end up killing many of our own people.”
Counter Terrorism Policing reported an hour later that the five suspects were British nationals: a 24-year-old from Camden, north London; three men aged 23, 24 and 25 from Westminster, central London, and one aged 24 from Willesden, north-west London.
Culture secretary Lisa Nandy told the Guardian at the Labour party conference on Monday that Farage was a “master of the conspiracy theory” when asked about his comments.
“I think that he’s good at using the very real sentiment that a lot of people feel, of anxiety and distrust,” she said. “Particularly in this era of mis- and disinformation, I think he’s very agile at exploiting that for political gain.”
Green Party peer baroness Jenny Jones also accused Farage of “irresponsible nonsense”, the paper reported.
“Once again Farage’s attempts to whip up division by scapegoating some of the world’s most vulnerable people has left him with egg on his face.”
The five men were released on bail under “stringent conditions” on Monday but remain under investigation. Residents evacuated from about 85 households were able to return home on Monday, but a cordon remains in place around the vehicles.
It is understood that the material found was not viable explosives, but police have said the investigation is continuing.
The head of UK Counter Terrorism Policing, assistant commissioner Laurence Taylor, acknowledged speculation over whether Iran was behind the plot and said the force was considering “every possible angle”.
In a statement outside New Scotland Yard on Monday, Mr Taylor said he knew there was “significant interest in whether the current geopolitical context has a bearing on this incident”.
He said: “At Counter Terrorism Policing, we are working within this context every single day and, at this stage, we are keeping an open mind in this investigation.
“We have, as you would expect, ensured that our protective security advice and posture remain commensurate to the threat.
“But be assured, we are considering this from every possible angle, including that this may be actively committed by proxies or individuals either knowingly or unknowingly working on behalf of a foreign state.”
