Several US aircraft have reportedly been moved from an airbase in East Anglia following a threat from Iran. Two American refuelling tankers were relocated to Germany from their usual base at RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk on Monday morning, with several other tankers at the base shifted to Germany and other locations later in the day, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Details of the reported threat
The exact nature of the threat is not yet known and remains under discussion among US officials, the newspaper reported. A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said: "We do not routinely comment on the activity of other nations. Aircraft and other assets move regularly according to operational requirements."
The development comes weeks after the US withdrew its bombers from RAF Fairford following a suspected Iran-related terror incident near the airbase.
Political reaction
On Monday, President Donald Trump said the US was "seeing positive momentum toward an end" to the conflict with Iran. He wrote on Truth Social about an "excellent conversation" with Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, the Prime Minister of Qatar, adding that Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, and others would prefer the status quo and that all had agreed Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.
Cabinet minister Lucy Powell said the security of military bases in the UK was kept under review. The Education Secretary told Sky News: "I can't comment on those sort of live operations, as you know. But we're constantly keeping the security of our bases under review and, as we've seen with other cases recently, we take firm and quick action where we need to."
