• A major incident has been declared near RAF Fairford and several men have been arrested on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act, Gloucestershire police say

• Residents in a nearby village have been evacuated to a leisure centre while investigations continue – officers say they believe the incident is contained

• A spokesperson for the US Air Force – who have used the military base to deploy American bombers during the ongoing conflict with Iran – says its personnel “remain vigilant”

• The context for this is troubling and comes amid a rising number of incidents across Europe of what’s termed “hybrid warfare”, writes our security correspondent

Frank Gardner
Security correspondent

For an official account of what has happened at RAF Fairford, we will need to wait for a police statement. But the context for this is troubling.

It comes amid a rising number of incidents across Europe of what’s termed “hybrid warfare”, allegedly being orchestrated by the Kremlin, or more specifically its GRU military intelligence, as punishment for those countries supporting Ukraine.

These incidents include arson, cyber attacks, overflights by unidentified drones close to sensitive locations like nuclear bases and power stations and most recently the discovery of 3 explosive drones at Leipzig-Halle airport in Germany which serves as a cargo hub for resupplying Ukraine.

Russia’s view is that Nato, and some countries in particular, like Britain, are already waging an indirect war with Moscow by supplying Ukraine with long-range munitions and that it is time for these countries to “feel some pain”.

At the same time, it’s worth bearing in mind that US warplanes have been using British bases as staging posts in the US war on Iran.

Right now though, Iran is pushing for a peace deal, albeit on terms unacceptable to Donald Trump.