UK intelligence chief warns of 'major shift' after Iran attacks military bases
Iran has raised the stakes in its sabotage efforts against military bases in the UK with Tehran behind multiple plots, the head of the UK's domestic intelligence service warned. Authorities have arrested scores of people suspected of working for Iran, as the level of state-backed threats against the UK exceeds terrorism and extremist activity, Ken McCallum, the director general of MI5, revealed…
Terrorism chief Ken McCallum has warned of a significant escalation in Iran's sabotage efforts targeting UK military bases. According to McCallum, Iranian-linked activities have resulted in more than 50 arrests in the past year, with the main shift involving attacks on harder targets such as military sites. British Prime Minister Andy Burnham suggested that Tehran was likely responsible for a recent plot against RAF Fairford, a base previously utilized by US bombers for strikes on Iran.
As a result, the US withdrew planes from the site, prompting a security alert and leading to the arrests of seven individuals suspected of involvement. Additionally, two more suspects were apprehended at RAF Molesworth in Cambridgeshire, a base known for hosting US intelligence agencies. McCallum cautioned that Iran's aggressive and sophisticated tactics may extend to the UK, emphasizing that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) possesses deep experience in using conventional and hybrid technologies.
Iran has previously targeted British bases in Diego Garcia and Akrotiri. The UK has prosecuted numerous individuals for attacks on Jewish sites and dissidents in London and other parts of the country. McCallum's latest national security update revealed that all state threats, including those from Russia and China, had quadrupled.
The EU's foreign affairs minister, Kaja Kallas, expressed solidarity with the British government, stating that Iran's campaign of intimidation and chaos extends beyond the Middle East. The EU has designated the Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organization and sanctioned Iranian officials for undermining freedom of navigation and human rights violations.
Written by urgent.news from The National UAE's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
