Three men in the United States have been charged with allegedly conspiring to use a UK-based network to orchestrate an attempted attack on RAF Fairford.
Allegedly Iran-backed operators, the trio are accused of coordinating a series of terrorist attacks in the UK on behalf of an Iran-aligned terrorist network, according to the US Department of Justice.
“As alleged, these defendants helped orchestrate a campaign of terror on behalf of terrorist organizations affiliated with Iran that targeted Jewish communities in Europe and the United States, and the British military base, RAF Fairford, housing American service members,” said US Attorney Jamie McDonald for the Southern District of New York.
Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi (a dual Iranian-Iraqi national), Mohsen Mohajeri (an Iranian national) and Mohammad Ali al-Hassani (an Iraqi national) are facing an eight-count indictment at a New York court.
The indictment and other court filings allege that the trio conspired to commit nearly 20 terrorist attacks and attempted attacks in Europe and the United States on behalf of an Iran-aligned terrorist network.
That terrorist network allegedly has links to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Lebanese-backed militants Hezbollah – both designated foreign terrorist organisations in the US.
One of the alleged attempted attacks was the foiled plot at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, on 27 September.
Five British men were arrested with suspected explosives near the base, which until recently housed the US air force.
A sixth British-Iranian man was also arrested several days later and all were released on bail.
At the time, Laurence Taylor, head of National Counter Terrorism Policing, said one line of enquiry was whether individuals may have been working unknowingly on behalf of a foreign state.
He acknowledged speculation around the possibility of links to the Iranian state, and said the force was keeping “an open mind in this investigation”.
In June, al-Saadi pleaded not guilty to charges that he plotted at least 18 attacks in retaliation for the US and Israel’s war with Iran. He has been held without bail since.
Al-Hassani and Mohajeri, both of whom were in Iran at the time of the alleged RAF Fairford terrorist plot, allegedly relied on a network of contacts in the United Kingdom.
Meanwhile al Saadi, who was already imprisoned pending terrorism charges, allegedly tried to coordinate with the other two men by passing coded messages through third parties.
The three allegedly orchestrated a campaign of 18 terrorist attacks on Europe in the spring of 2026, including seven in the UK.
Attacks they are accused of coordinating, perhaps without those on the ground knowing who they were acting for, included arson, explosives, and in one instance, a stabbing in London of two Jewish men.
Al-Saadi, 32, is a citizen of Iraq and Iran. Mohajeri, 48, is a citizen of Iran. Al-Hassani, 35, is a citizen of Iraq.
All three are charged with conspiring to provide material support to Hezbollah, conspiring to provide material support to the IRGC, conspiring to provide material support for acts of terrorism, providing material support for acts of terrorism, conspiring to bomb a place of public use and financing terrorism.
Al-Saadi is also charged with attempted acts of terrorism transcending national boundaries and attempted destruction of property by means of fire or explosive.