5 men arrested near a U.K. air base used by U.S. forces on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act

British counterterrorism police said Sunday that they are investigating after several men were arrested on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act in a village near a Royal Air Force base, which is used by U.S. bombers.

The Metropolitan Police said officers received a call around 12:45 a.m. local time about three suspicious vehicles that were traveling toward RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, a county in southwestern England. Armed officers responded, and five men were arrested in the Whelford area on suspicion of committing offenses under the Explosives Act. They were then arrested on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act.

“We are in the early stages of an investigation, and five men remain in custody,” said Vicki Evans, the deputy assistant police commissioner and national coordinator for counter terrorism policing in the U.K., in a statement. “As you would expect, we are working closely with our partners to understand the circumstances of the incident.”

Evans said around 85 households were evacuated as a precaution. A bomb disposal team was on site examining some vehicles in the Whelford area, police said earlier Sunday.

The town of Whelford is close to RAF Fairford, about 100 miles west of London, and is one of several bases in Britain that have been used by the U.S. Air Force under an agreement dating from the 1950s. 

After the start of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran on Feb. 28, the U.K. government allowed the American military to use the Fairford base to strike Iranian missile sites. Iran has previously indicated that a base used to attack its territory is a legitimate target.

Authorities are investigating a link between the Fairford arrests and Iran as one possibility.

President Trump told reporters during a trip to Chicago on Sunday that the men arrested “were looking to do big damage to our port.” He said U.S. authorities worked with U.K. police on the arrest and said that “we had them under view for a long time, and we got them.”

Gloucestershire Police Assistant Chief Constable Richard Ocone said his department’s emergency services have well-rehearsed plans to deal with major incidents like this, and the public should expect to see a police presence in the area for some time.

“We’d like to thank the residents who have left their homes this morning for their understanding and support,” said Ocone. “We appreciate the disruption this will have caused and would like to reassure them we are working as quickly as we can to get them back in their properties.”

One evacuated resident told the BBC, CBS News’ international partner, that three “unusual vans” appeared in the area near the Fairford air base overnight. 

Speaking to the BBC, Julian Tubsbery, who was evacuated from his home in the early hours of Sunday, said that “there were these three vans that arrived in the middle of the village and a resident reported them to the police straight away.”

Helicopter footage aired on BBC News showed a wheeled robot operating near three parked white vans near the base. However, the police have not yet confirmed which vehicles were being examined, or if they were connected with the incident.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Air Force said its personnel based at RAF Fairford “remain vigilant” but would not discuss specific force protection measures for security reasons.

“We constantly assess a variety of factors that determine what measures we institute or modify to protect our installations, our people and their families,” the spokesperson said.

The U.S. military’s European Command said it would not discuss specific force protection measures, but added it would “take appropriate actions to ensure the safety and security of our U.S. service members, civilians, contractors, and their families across the European theater.”

Security measures have been significantly increased in recent days at the air base, according to an eyewitness quoted by the Reuters news agency, who said there had been more roadblocks and armed police preventing access.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham urged people on Sunday not to speculate after the arrests, saying that the “safety and security of the public” is his government’s “first priority.”

“I want people to know that we will always take every step necessary to protect our communities and keep our country safe,” Burnham wrote on social media. “The investigation remains ongoing, and I would urge people not to speculate while the authorities establish the full facts.”