Bangladesh

Dhaka, September 28, 2026. Dhaka is scrutinizing the caution displayed by British investigators, who are pursuing multiple leads without identifying a sponsor after the arrest of five men near the Fairford airbase, used by the US Air Force to strike Iranian missile sites. The Bangladeshi press, based on international dispatches relayed by TBS News and the Daily Star, initially focuses on the police method: a morning tip, a rapid intervention, and then a wealth of verbal precautions regarding the identity of the presumed perpetrators.

According to articles published in Dhaka, the police received a call early Sunday morning, September 27, reporting three suspicious vans heading towards RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire. Armed officers apprehended five men, suspected of explosives law offenses and preparation of a terrorist act, in the neighboring village of Whelford. The hamlet's residents were evacuated to a nearby leisure center, while an army bomb disposal team examined several vehicles, including two vans with open rear doors, according to aerial images broadcast. A security cordon was established; the police deemed the incident "contained".

The national coordinator of the counter-terrorism police, Vicki Evans, summarized the investigation's restraint: "We are at the early stages of an investigation, and five men remain in custody." No sponsor has been publicly identified. A source close to the case mentions an Iran-related motivation as the most likely hypothesis, without excluding Russian sabotage or an Islamist project, three leads that the Bangladeshi press lists without affirmed hierarchy.

Fairford, home to the US 501st Combat Support Wing, had obtained permission in March, granted by Prime Minister Keir Starmer, to serve as a base for "defensive" strikes against Iranian missile sites. As early as July, London had reinforced the protection of its forces after a warning from the Revolutionary Guards, according to which any base used to launch attacks would become a legitimate target.

Donald Trump described the operation as "fantastic", stating that the suspects "wanted to do big damage" and had been under surveillance "for a long time" by London and Washington. Dhaka notes that this statement contrasts with the institutional caution of Gloucestershire, which has not confirmed either the motive or the geographical origin of the suspects.