RAF Fairford live updates: Five men arrested over suspected bomb plot are UK nationals from London, say counter terror police

That's all from me, Tom Ambrose, and the RAF Fairford live blog for today. Thanks for following along.

You can read our latest report into the foiled attack here:

Counter-terrorism police have confirmed the five men arrested over the suspected bomb plot near RAF Fairford are all British nationals in their 20s.

The men were arrested on Sunday near the base in Gloucestershire, which is being used by the US air force in its operations against Iran.

Lucy Hough speaks to the Guardian's defence and security editor, Dan Sabbagh …

• Five British nationals have been released on bail after being arrested on suspicion of terror offences at RAF Fairford, police have said. They added that the alleged offences under investigation could have been “actively committed by proxies or individuals either knowingly or unknowingly working on behalf of a foreign stateâ€.

• The head of counter-terrorism policing, Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, said on Monday afternoon: “I can confirm that following extensive interviews, and inquiries, the five men who were arrested are being released on police bail this afternoon. To be very clear, this does not mean the investigation is over, they are subject to stringent conditions on their movement and contact with others. They absolutely remain under investigation as we explore multiple lines of inquiry. At counter-terrorism policing we are working within this context every day and we are keeping an open mind in this investigation.â€

• The men were pictured on Sunday being apprehended, shirtless, near the RAF base in Gloucestershire, which is being used by the US air force in its operations against Iran. Police said three of them were 24, one was 25 and one 23, and three resided in Westminster, one in Camden and the other in Willesden.

• The suspects were arrested in Whelford on Sunday morning after reports of three vehicles travelling towards the airbase at 12.45am. They were detained on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act and preparation of a terrorist act contrary to section 5 of the Terrorism Act. Counter-terrorism policing said investigators examined the scene overnight and had been carrying out a range of activity that had led to multiple new lines of inquiry.

• Eighty-five households were evacuated from the village on Sunday and a large police and emergency services presence has been there since then. Police said they were using “significant numbers of resources, including military assets†at the location. “We are working hard to minimise disruption to local communities, but ask for their patience, as our work continues at the scene,†they said.

• Officers have been investigating whether Iran may be behind the suspected bomb plot. In July, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps publicly noted RAF Fairford's use by US bombers, warning the UK that “any base used for aggression against Iranian territory constitutes a legitimate target for our forcesâ€.

• In a statement on social media on Monday, the Iranian embassy in the UK said: “The embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in London categorically rejects and strongly condemns the recent unfounded and malicious speculations published by some British individuals and media outlets attempting to link Iran to arrest of five suspects in the vicinity of RAF Fairford base. The circulation of such fabricated speculations, particularly in the aftermath of the criminal acts of aggression committed by the United States and the Israeli regime against the Iranian people, will serve no purpose other than to fuel Iranophobia propaganda in the UK.

Armed police officers work on a road outside the perimeter of the RAF Fairford airbase.

A farmer who claims to have alerted the police to a suspected terrorist bomb plot at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire has said she has had “no follow-up at all†from the authorities.

The woman told reporters on Monday that she did not see herself as a hero for having reported vans blocking a road near the base while on her way back from a party.

Five men from London were arrested in the village of Whelford, near to RAF Fairford, on Sunday on suspicion of explosives and terrorism offences.

The village remained shut off on Monday afternoon, with people evacuated from their homes dispersed to family, friends, hotels and a leisure centre.

The farmer, in her 50s, said she had been travelling home with her husband and a “young lad†who works for them when she spotted the vehicles parked in a “really strange formationâ€.

She said:

You couldn't drive between them on the road, and you also couldn't drive up the farm drive, and I think this has been one of the funny things that people are saying: ‘How could you notice?' But when you live in Whelford, you notice everything. We all know what cars each other drive, we know who we are, we know the people that cycle through regularly.

She said one of the vans had some “strange sign writing on it†and she initially believed it belonged to undercover police.

She said:

We had a bit of a look at the vans, established there was no one in there, tried to phone the number on the side, just in case we could get it moved so we could drive down to the farmyard, and the number didn't work.

The five men who were arrested and subsequently released on bail are all British citizens, home secretary Shabana Mahmood has just told the Labour party conference.

She adds that the scene is “now safe†and the residents living near to the RAF base are now able to return home.

“Let this be a reminder: you will never defeat us,†he says.

Police are considering whether the foiled attack may have involved “proxies or individuals, either knowingly or unknowingly, working on behalf of a foreign stateâ€.

Taylor says rapid mobilisation was necessary. He says often these plots involve people seeking “quick financial gainâ€, rather than being motivated by terrorism.

The police works “hand in glove with MI5†to keep the public safe “from a myriad of threats†and urges people to report anything that does not “look rightâ€.

And that ends the assistant commissioner for specialist operation's statement on the steps of New Scotland Yard.

Taylor goes on to say that the five men in custody are being released on police bail later today.

“To be very clear, this does not mean the investigation is over,†he says. “They are subject to stringent conditions on their movement and contact with others.â€

The men remain under investigation, he adds.

Head of counter-terrorism policing Laurence Taylor is providing an update outside New Scotland Yard in London.

He says Gloucestershire police received a report of suspicious vehicles in the vicinity of RAF Fairford and arrested five men on suspicion of offences under the Explosives Act and later preparation of a terrorist act, under section 5 of the Terrorism Act.

“The men had been travelling in three vehicles and, overnight, those vehicles have been subject to extensive examination,†he says.

Police remain at the scene and a cordon remains in place. He hopes residents will be able to return to their homes later today.

Andy Burnham has said he will chair an emergency Cobra meeting later today in response to the RAF Fairfod incident.

Such meetings are convened to handle matters of national emergency or major disruption, including natural disasters, terrorist attacks and major industrial accidents.

Speaking to LBC this afternoon, Burnham said:

What I can say is that I will chair a meeting of Cobra later this afternoon. Just to make sure we have the full picture of the full situation, very clearly, in our sights. And so maybe I'll say more about that later today.