Iran sees ‘false flag’ operations after UK blames IRGC for airbase incident

Iran has been accused of being behind a plot against an airbase in the UK. Save Share Tehran, Iran –Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned the United Kingdom’s attribution of an alleged plot near a military airbase in the town of Fairford to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which it views as part of a greater Western effort. British Prime MinisterAndy Burnham told Parliamenton Monday that the suspected plot last month against the Royal Air Force base was “highly likely to have been coordinated in Iran” and “almost certainly directed by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard”. Burnham promised action against what he described as Iran-linked “criminal networks” and their financing networks. The UK announced sanctions against two Iranian nationals over alleged “hostile activity” at RAF Fairford in southern England. It follows an incident around the base, which hosted US military aircraft, in the early hours of September 27, whenfive British menin their 20s suspected of “terrorism” and explosives offences were arrested. The men were not charged and were released on police bail. Another two men were also arrested and later released. Information about a suspected security threat to RAF Fairford and the events remains opaque. In a statement late Monday, the Iranian ministry described the UK’s claims of an Iranian role as “an ugly plot” that would also serve to “evade accountability for Britain’s participation” in the ongoing war against Iran on February 28. It said the UK had failed to provide sufficient evidence to back its claims and rejected the accusations of Iranian involvement as a “clumsy false flag operation”. “Britain’s track record of fabricating security claims against other countries, which have in some cases led to damaging tensions and conflicts in West Asia, is well known,” the ministry said, without elaborating. British Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said investigators assessed the coordinator to be a known individual based in Iran, although she did not name that person or disclose the supporting communications, financial records or other intelligence. RAF Fairford is a prominent base for United States aircraft that have participated in the war on Iran, which began on February 28 following US and Israeli strikes that killed several Iranian leaders and officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. After news of the incident, the US withdrew approximately a dozenB-1 bombersfrom the Fairford base....