The US Department of Justice has announced charges against three Iran-backed operatives, whom it accuses of involvement in a series of plots in the United States and Europe. The department said the suspects most recently orchestrated a terrorist plot at an air force base in the United Kingdom, referring to a major incident in September near RAF Fairford, where US armed forces were stationed.
The charges were laid in an indictment unsealed on Tuesday, the department said. The three men named are Iranian national Mohsen Mohajeri, Iraqi national Mohammad Ali al-Hassani, and dual Iranian-Iraqi citizen Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi. The US removed all its bombers from the RAF Fairford base last month after the incident, which police had described as “suspicious”.
Charges over alleged plots in Europe and the US
The indictment accuses the three men of planning attacks in Europe that were carried out under the name of a purportedly new group, Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamiya, also known as HAYI. The department said the group used a pseudonym and claimed responsibility for a number of attacks.
According to the department’s statement, 18 terrorist attacks were carried out in Europe in the spring of 2026 and claimed by HAYI, and seven of them took place in the UK. It said the attacks involved arson, explosives and, in one instance, a near-fatal stabbing in London of two Jewish men, one of whom held dual US-British citizenship. Two Jewish men were stabbed in Golders Green, north London, in April, and a suspect is due to stand trial next year.
One of the accused, a dual Iranian-Iraqi national, is alleged to have communicated with contacts in the UK while held in a prison in New York, where he is awaiting trial on separate charges. The other two are accused of doing the same from Iran. FBI Director Kash Patel said one of the three “allegedly sent coded messages to assist in future acts of violence” from detention.
Patel said the accused were involved in nearly 20 attempted attacks carried out in support of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Iran-backed Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah. He added: “This eight-count indictment shows the determination of Iran to commit terrorist attacks in Europe and the US.”
Alleged preparations for the RAF Fairford plot
A major incident was declared on 27 September near the RAF Fairford base in the Cotswolds, Gloucestershire, after three suspicious vans were seen near the airbase. No explosive materials were found in the vans, but a quantity of petrol was seized.
The department alleged that in August, al-Hassani directed and paid associates in the UK to carry out preparatory steps and arrange logistics for the plot. It said that on 22 August he paid one person to carry out pre-operational surveillance of the base’s perimeter, and that in September he paid several people to help prepare.
According to the statement, these preparations included procuring vans and barrels of fuel, researching the purchase of chemical accelerants including large quantities of potassium chloride, and buying metallic objects that could be used as explosive shrapnel. The suspects allegedly gave the vans the appearance of belonging to a fuel delivery business and a swimming pool supply business.
The department said that on 26 September al-Hassani tasked individuals to drive three vans to the base, and that some of the vans were later found to contain barrels of fuel. It also said he was in frequent communication with the drivers and helped direct them. At least two of the vans, it said, encountered a security roadblock on the way to the perimeter and were not allowed to continue on their intended route.
The vans were first spotted in the very early hours of 27 September by a local farmer who was heading home from a party, and who called the police.
Iran denies role in RAF Fairford incident
Iran has strongly denied any involvement in the RAF Fairford incident. The Iranian embassy in London said it “categorically rejects and strongly condemns” what it called “unfounded and malicious speculations” linking Iran to the incident. Seven men have been arrested in the UK over the incident, and two British nationals appeared in court last month in connection with the alleged Iran-linked plot.
President Donald Trump cited “some threats” to the base as the reason for withdrawing all US bombers from RAF Fairford after the incident. The base has been used by the US Air Force for decades. In recent months, the US has flown B-1 and B-52 bombers from there to the Middle East for “defensive” strikes on Iran.
In July, Iran said “any base used for aggression against Iranian territory constitutes a legitimate target for our forces.” The charges against the three men are allegations set out by the US Justice Department, and the accused have not been tried on them.
