British men released on bail after suspected terror plot
British authorities arrested five men near a military base used by the U.S. on suspicion of terrorism, but released them on bail shortly after. The incident remains under investigation with no confirmed explosives found.
Why it matters
The event underscores heightened security tensions regarding military bases and the potential for public alarm during suspected terror investigations.
At first, British police said they'd foiled a suspected terror plot. They arrested five masked men near a military base that the U.S. uses to launch attacks on Iran. President Trump said they'd been under surveillance for a while. But then this afternoon, authorities released the suspects on bail without charge. NPR's Lauren Frayer, at our London bureau, is here to walk us through what sounds like a dramatic 36 hours or so. Hi, Lauren. LAUREN FRAYER, BYLINE: Hi, Sacha. PFEIFFER: This seems like quite an about-face. Walk us through the timeline. FRAYER: This has been happening near RAF, Royal Air Force base Fairford. It's one of the bases that hosts these big U.S. B-1 bombers that take off for missions over Iran. And it's in a rural area called the Cotswolds, popular with tourists - green, bucolic hills a couple hours west of London.
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