Prime Minister Andy Burnham finally addressed Iran while giving an update on the investigation into the RAF Fairford military base incident in which five men were arrested. 'There are strong indications that Iran played a part in what happened over the weekend at RAF Fairford,' Burnham said in an interview.
'But of course, it remains an ongoing complex and serious police investigation,' Burnham also said. When the five men were arrested early Sunday morning on suspicion of explosives offences and preparing a terrorist act, Burnham asked the public not to speculate. Counter Terrorism Policing (CTP) later confirmed that a quantity of petrol, but no explosive devices, was found in the three vans.
Was Nigel Farage Right About Iran?
However, Nigel Farage did not mince words when talking about RAF Fairford and possible Iranian links. Shortly after the incident, Farage shared on social media: '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.'
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.
— Nigel Farage (@Nigel_Farage) September 27, 2026
We deserve to be told the truth about the Fairford bomb plotters’ identities.
'We deserve to be told the truth about the Fairford bomb plotters' identities,' he also said. Farage doubled down on his thoughts on Monday: 'I know that over the course of the last few months, counter-terrorism have launched a massive investigation into Iranian nationals living in this country, worried that something like the Fairford plot would come along.'
Fairford proves my point on Iran and the IRGC. pic.twitter.com/ngfx2plwlg
— Nigel Farage (@Nigel_Farage) September 28, 2026
Shortly after Farage's statement, CTP released details of the arrested men. They were aged between 23 and 25, and all were British nationals. Three were residents of Westminster, one was from Camden and another from Willesden.
The Iranian Embassy in London, in a social media post, said that it 'categorically rejects and strongly condemns the recent unfounded and malicious speculations.'
Proscription
Farage said he has repeatedly warned the government about the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a powerful military organisation in Iran. The Reform UK leader said he has made calls to have it considered as a 'proscribed organisation.'
Under the Terrorism Act 2000, the Home Secretary may proscribe an organisation if they believe it is concerned in terrorism and consider the decision proportionate. The government has 84 proscribed organisations under the Terrorism Act of 2000.
Among UK's proscribed organisations are Al-Qaeda (proscribed in 2001), Daesh/Islamis State (2014), National Action (2016), Hamas (2021) and the Wagner Group (2023).
Yusuf: One in Six Small-Boat Arrivals are Iranians
'Over the course of this year, I had intelligence that told me that the Iranian regime was using the boats crossing to get their operatives into Britain, that literally we were allowing people to come in who may well end up killing our own people,' Farage also said.
Farage's party colleague, Zia Yusuf, also Reform UK's spokesperson for home affairs, said that one in six people arriving via small boats were Iranian nationals. 'Over the last eight years, 215,000 illegal migrants have broken into this country by boat. The vast majority: military-aged men. One in six of those are Iranian nationals,' said Yusuf.
The Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford recorded small-boat arrivals between 2018 and 2025, and said: 'Iranians account for the largest share of small-boat arrivals since 2018.' However, the figures record the nationalities of small-boat arrivals and do not establish whether any individuals had links to the Iranian government or its military organisations.
