UK's Burnham says Iran likely behind foiled plot on base hosting U.S. bombers

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(The Center Square) – Following last month’s foiled terror plot against a United Kingdom base hosting American bomber jets, UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham said Monday that Iran likely was involved in planning it.

Before Burnham’s speech on the floor of the House of Commons, President Donald Trump had said multiple times that he believed the Islamic Republic was involved in the plot at the Royal Air Force Fairford Base.

“I can confirm our assessment that it is highly likely to have been coordinated in Iran, almost certainly directed by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard,” said Burnham.

The prime minister vowed to “crack down” on Iran, despite the UK’s slightly hesitant approach in America’s Operation Epic Fury.

“We will not tolerate these threats on our soil. We will crack down on Iran’s use of criminal networks, using our full range of powers to target them and their funding streams, and we will bring further sanctions to restrict the capacity of Iran and the IRGC to do us harm,” the prime minister added.

Iran has denied any involvement in the alleged plot.

Despite multiple arrests in the foiled terror plot, a handful of suspects were released on bail, leading to Trump criticizing UK officials for the move, saying he was surprised by the move and "wouldn't have done that."

UK authorities have been guarded in releasing too many details about the suspects, but confirmed that those initially arrested were all UK nationals living in London and in their 20s.

Since the incident, the U.S. relocated the bombers from RAF Fairford, with Trump pointing to security concerns over the base.

Despite the latest developments, Trump maintains that Iranian officials want to make a deal; however, the president remains open to more military strikes but continues to believe the conflict with Iran will be “over soon.”