U.S. prosecutors indict three Iranian-backed men in attempted RAF Fairford van plot

The eight-count indictment, filed in the Southern District of New York, says Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, an Iraqi-Iranian national and Kataib Hezbollah commander, directed the attempted attack from federal jail while awaiting trial on earlier terrorism charges. Prosecutors allege Mohammad Ali al-Hassani and IRGC operative Mohsen Mohajeri, both in Iran, ran the U.K. preparation through associates. The plot allegedly involved surveillance of RAF Fairford's perimeter, procurement of vans and fuel barrels, research into chemical accelerants and items for explosive shrapnel.

The evidence trail centers on communications and money. Prosecutors say al-Saadi used phone calls to family in Iraq to relay coded instructions to al-Hassani and Mohajeri, including a message three days before the attempted attack telling relatives to give al-Hassani money so 'we can do it.' Al-Hassani allegedly paid associates for preparatory steps in August and September. U.K. law enforcement recovered three white vans and arrested the individuals after at least two encountered a security roadblock near the base.

The case links two threads often reported separately: a jailed foreign militia commander, an IRGC-backed network and a physical attack attempt on a base used by U.S. aircraft and personnel. The indictment alleges nearly 20 terrorist attacks or attempted attacks across Europe and the U.S. on behalf of Iran-aligned groups designated as foreign terrorist organizations. The attribution rests on charging documents, recovered vehicles and a pattern of jail calls, coded relays, cash payments and local procurement.

For defense planners and base operators, the indictment shows how a remote command structure allegedly directed low-tech, high-damage methods against military logistics hubs using local criminal associates and ordinary vehicles. RAF Fairford matters because it supports deployed U.S. air operations, making perimeter security, counter-surveillance and financial interdiction central to protecting personnel and aircraft. The case also underscores the legal exposure of overseas operatives and their U.K. facilitators, who face charges even when the attack fails.