US indicts three Iran-backed operatives over nearly 20 attacks and an alleged September plot at RAF Fairford
A US indictment unsealed on Tuesday charges Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, Mohsen Mohajeri and Mohammad Ali al-Hassani with terrorism offences for alleged work supporting Kata'ib Hizballah and Iran's Revolutionary Guards, including nearly 20 attacks and attempted attacks in Europe and the United States and a September 2026 plot at RAF Fairford, where US forces were stationed. Prosecutors allege al-Saadi helped coordinate from a New York jail through coded family phone calls. The charges are allegations: al-Saadi has pleaded not guilty to the earlier charges against him, his lawyers have challenged the coded-language claim, and Iran has denied any role in the suspected Fairford plot.
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Key points
- An eight-count US indictment charges al-Saadi, Mohajeri and al-Hassani with terrorism offences linked to Kata'ib Hizballah and Iran's Revolutionary Guards.
- Prosecutors allege a September plot at RAF Fairford — surveillance, fuel vans and accelerants — coordinated in part by al-Saadi from a New York jail through coded family calls.
- The indictment also covers nearly 20 alleged attacks and attempts in Europe and the US, including seven in the UK and a New York synagogue attempt.
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- Al-Saadi has pleaded not guilty to the earlier charges and his lawyers call the coded-language claim speculative; Iran denies any role in the Fairford plot.
What happened
RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire is the US Air Force's European base for heavy bombers and was used during the US bombing campaign against Iran. In July, Iran's Revolutionary Guards named Fairford among bases it called legitimate targets. The September security incident at the base — vans stopped at a roadblock, arrests near the village of Whelford, and two men later charged in Britain in connection with it — is the event Tuesday's indictment now attributes, as an allegation, to a directed plot.
Al-Saadi's own path runs through the spring: arrested abroad on 1 May and transferred to US custody, charged over the European attacks, and — prosecutors allege — quiet for four months before the Fairford preparations began in August.
What we know / what we don't know yet
What we know
- That the indictment was unsealed on Tuesday with eight counts against the three named men, and what it alleges, in the Justice Department's own summary.
- That al-Saadi is in US custody, pleaded not guilty to the earlier charges, and that Iran has denied a role in the suspected plot.
What we don't know yet
- Whether Mohajeri and al-Hassani are in custody — the indictment places them in Iran at the time of the Fairford plot and no arrest is reported.
- Any plea by the three men to the new superseding charges, or a trial date.
- Iran's response to Tuesday's indictment itself — its denial covers the suspected plot.
Claim by claim
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Why this label: The Justice Department's own release, read in full: the unsealing and the charges are the department's act. Everything the indictment says the men did is an allegation, and the department itself notes all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
Why this label: Every element of this claim is an allegation in the indictment and other court filings, as set out in the Justice Department's release — it has not been tested in court. The Guardian's report of the indictment gives the same account, including arrests near the base on 27 September.
On the ladder: the evidence so far sits low — early, single or social sources. We publish the claim as a claim, never as fact.
Why this label: These are the indictment's allegations as summarised by the Justice Department. They are carried as allegations, with the spring attacks attributed to the group the department names as a front — a designation the accused have not answered in the reporting read.
On the ladder: the evidence so far sits low — early, single or social sources. We publish the claim as a claim, never as fact.
Why this label: The plea and the October filing are reported by Reuters; the filing's wording is the defence's stated position. The not-guilty plea covers the earlier counts; no plea on the new superseding charges is reported yet.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
Why this label: Both are stated positions, reported by Reuters: Iran's denial and the prime minister's October assessment. Neither is a finding, and they are carried as the two governments' positions.
On the ladder: a claim earns Verified from primary evidence, or from two independent sources that do not copy each other.
Why it matters
The indictment ties three threads together — the spring attacks in Europe, the September scare at a US bomber base in England, and Iran's war with the United States — into one alleged network directed from Iran and, prosecutors say, coordinated even from a US jail cell. Whether a court accepts that account, including the contested translations at its centre, will decide how much of it stands.
Background
Show the background timeline (5)
About 18 attacks in Europe are claimed by a group US prosecutors call a front for Kata'ib Hizballah; seven are in the United Kingdom.
Al-Saadi is arrested abroad and transferred to US custody; he is charged over the European attacks and an attempted New York synagogue bombing.
Three vans are stopped and recovered near RAF Fairford and their occupants arrested; two men are later charged in Britain in connection with the incident.
Al-Saadi's lawyers challenge the coded-language claim in a court filing as speculative and based on questionable translations.
The eight-count superseding indictment is unsealed in New York, adding Mohajeri and al-Hassani and the Fairford plot allegations.
Update history
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Published in Checking state — the indictment and its allegations are on the record, and pleas to the new charges, the two other defendants' custody status and Iran's response to the indictment are still awaited.