US indicts three Iranian-backed operatives over nearly 20 attacks, including a plot against RAF Fairford
Prosecutors allege the men worked for an Iran-aligned network and that one coordinated a plot against a British airbase housing US forces from a New York jail.
The US Justice Department said three Iranian-backed operatives have been indicted for their roles in nearly 20 terrorist attacks and plots1. The charges are connected to alleged Iranian-linked terror plots, including a September scheme against a British Royal Air Force base that housed US military personnel and aircraft, according to an indictment unsealed Tuesday3.
The base was RAF Fairford, a British airbase housing US forces2,4. Mohsen Mohajeri, an Iranian national, and Mohammad Ali al-Hassani, an Iraqi national, are among those named, according to US officials2. Prosecutors describe Mohajeri, 48, as an operative of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps5. Men charged over the airbase plot have been linked to attacks on London synagogues, and the charges name two of them for the first time5.
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What prosecutors allege
The indictment alleges that since early in the year the three men worked to commit terror attacks on behalf of an Iran-aligned terrorist network3. It alleges that a leader of an Islamic terrorist group tried to coordinate with his fellow defendants from jail by passing coded messages through third parties3. That alleged IRGC operative helped coordinate the Fairford plot from a New York jail, according to the charges4.
“The defendants listed in the indictment allegedly supported two foreign terrorist organizations,” Attorney General Todd Blanche said1. US officials said the suspects were tied to the IRGC and to the Iran-backed Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah2. The allegations have not been tested in court1.
Why it matters to investors
The case sets out, in the US government’s account, an Iranian-linked campaign reaching beyond the Middle East into Britain and the United States2,3. It names the IRGC directly5 and ties the alleged plots to an Iran-aligned network3.
The charges also link plots against a military base to attacks on civilian targets in London4,5.
What to watch
The next steps are the court proceedings on the indictment1, any British response to the Fairford findings2, further details on how the alleged coordination from a New York jail worked3,4, and what US officials disclose about the roles of the IRGC and Kataib Hezbollah in the case2.
Sources
- Three Iranian-Backed Operatives Indicted For Their Roles In Nearly 20 Terrorist Attacks And ..., justice.gov (2026-11-11)
- Three Iran -backed suspects plotted attacks including RAF Fairford incident, US says - BBC, bbc.co.uk (2026-11-11)
- 3 charged with plotting terror attacks in U.S., Europe, axios.com (2026-11-10)
- Iran -backed operative plotted attack on US base in Britain from NY prison, iranintl.com (2026-11-11)
- Men linked to London synagogue attacks charged over UK airbase plot - Euronews.com, euronews.com (2026-11-11)
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