The U.S. relocated two military aircraft from RAF Mildenhall, a Royal Air Force base in the United Kingdom, on Monday following reports of an unspecified threat from Iran. It was the second time the U.S. moved aircraft from a British air force base after an alleged Iran-linked threat.
The two refueling aircraft were relocated to Germany.
A U.S. Air Force spokesperson wouldn’t provide details about the movement of resources, but said in a statement that aircraft rotate between locations for a variety of reasons, the Wall Street Journal reported. It wasn’t known if the threat was imminent, sources told the paper.
In early October, the U.S. sent B-1 bombers back to the U.S. from another base, RAF Fairford, due to a plot to kill U.S. pilots and target aircraft with drones and other means.
Two suspects, Mohmed Abdulkarim, 24, and Nouman Essghir, 24, both from Westminster, were charged in late October with assisting a foreign intelligence service, which police said they believed to be Iran.
The investigation began after five men were arrested near the base on Sept. 27 following reports of suspicious vehicles.
On Sept. 30, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Fox News that Israel had warned the United Kingdom about an Iranian terror plot.
In an Oct. 23 memo, U.S. Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton said agencies had “received intelligence that Iran has substantially increased efforts to target U.S. personnel. The lethal plotting efforts by the Iranians against U.S. citizens have reached advanced stages in both the Middle East and certain other countries.”
Asked about the memo on Oct. 26, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, “We’ve addressed it by moving people away from the threat.”
The U.S. upgraded its security posture at two RAF bases used by U.S. forces to FPCON (Force Protection Condition) Charlie, which signals an incident has occurred or intelligence has been received indicating a probable terrorist threat or other hostile action against U.S. personnel or installations, the Journal reported, citing the War Zone, a military news site.
“Enhanced force protection measures are in effect across RAF Lakenheath and RAF Mildenhall,” the War Zone reported on Monday.
Iran has threatened to extend its attacks on U.S. forces beyond the Middle East.
U.S. President Donald Trump has downplayed the possibility of a renewed attack on Iran. In an interview with CBS‘s “60 Minutes” on Sunday, Trump said he saw no reason to intensify the war with the Islamic Republic, as long as there is progress in negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear program and reopening the Strait of Hormuz. He told CNN in a phone interview the same day that it was “highly unlikely” he would need to order renewed attacks on the Islamic Republic. “I would if necessary, but we hit them really hard. I hit them so hard. You don’t know how hard I hit them,” he said.
