Gabriela Pomeroy
Live reporter

The BBC understands that some evacuees are now returning to their homes.

Our reporter on the ground has been told by a farmer living nearby that local people are being allowed back to their houses.

On Sunday, 85 households close to the military base were advised to evacuate, and a leisure centre was made available for those unable to stay with family or friends.

However, a large cordon still remains in place near to RAF Fairford.

Sadaf Maruf
Your Voice news editor

Image source, PA Wire

Gerrard lives in Marston Meysey, a village in Wiltshire that's about a six-minute drive away from RAF Fairford's runway.

Marston Meysey is a small settlement, made up of just 60 houses, but the residents' worries now loom large.

"The bombers are too close to domestic dwellings," Gerrard says, adding that the base is "very close to public roads, which is a security risk that is all too real with respect to potential terrorist attempts".

According to Gerrard, who asked we refer to him using a pseudonym, one end of RAF Fairford's runway is roughly 420 metres (460 yards) away from a children's playground.

Image source, Getty Images

He says villagers have raised their worries about noise and security repeatedly with the Ministry of Defence (MoD), RAF, and local MP.

Gerrard is also concerned about the number of aviation enthusiasts who visit the area regularly.

"It’s not really possible to tell them apart from any malicious potential terrorist activity or surveillance," he says.

Releases at odds with major incident declaredpublished at 16:39 BST 28 September

16:39 BST 28 September

Frank Gardner
Security correspondent

Up and down the country the word "What?!" is probably being mouthed in incredulity.

The announcement this afternoon by the head of Counter Terrorism Policing (CTP) that all five men arrested outside RAF Fairford airbase early on Sunday are to be released on bail sits at odds with our being told this was a "major incident" and talk of disaster averted.

The men, all young UK nationals from London, are still under investigation. But the fact they are no longer in custody dramatically reduces the scale of how big or how dangerous a plot this was alleged to be.

So what were they doing? Dressed in balaclavas and turning up in vans in the dead of night close to the perimeter of one of the most sensitive military sites in the country, then fleeing on being spotted by a vigilant member of the public, are actions bound to attract suspicion.

The fact that a Cobra national security meeting has been convened to discuss this incident shows it is being taken extremely seriously by the government.

And yet now, as it stands on Monday afternoon, it leaves us with more questions than answers.

Image source, UK pool

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood says the RAF Fairford counter-terror investigation serves as a reminder that at a time of "heighten threat, we must all remain vigilant".

Speaking at Labour's party conference in Liverpool, Mahmood addresses anyone who wishes to carry out harm on British soil: "You will never defeat us".

The home secretary says she cannot speak further on the matter as police need to be left to carry out their investigation, though says the men under suspicion are all British.

She reveals the scene is now safe and affected residents will soon be able to return to their homes.

In the latest update, Head of Counter Terrorism Policing Laurence Taylor revealed that the five men arrested near RAF Fairford on Sunday morning are being released on police bail.

Here are the key points:

• The five men are being released following "extensive interviews and inquiries"
• The investigation continues and the men are subject to "stringent conditions on their movement and contact with others" and "absolutely remain under investigation"

• Taylor said the men had been arrested on suspicion of explosives offences and later on suspicion of preparation of a terrorist act
• He said the three vehicles the men had been travelling in have been subject to "extensive examination" with support from military and forensic experts
• CTP hopes to reduce their presence at the scene "later today" and "get residents back to their homes"

Taylor added that CTP are keeping an "open mind" as to whether the "geopolitical context" is a factor in their investigation.

He says police are "considering this from every angle", including whether the incident was "committed by proxies or individuals... working on behalf of a foreign state".

Taylor continues and says he hopes to return the affected communities "to normality" as quickly as possible.

The assistant commissioner also asks the public to "remain vigilant" and report any suspicious activity to the police.

He ends his statement by saying incidents like this one are "a reminder of the importance of public vigilance".

Taylor says to be very clear, this does not mean that the investigation is over.

They are under investigation as the police explore multiple lines of inquiry.

Taylor addresses whether the "geopolitical context" has a bearing on the incident.

He says the case is being considered from every possible angle, including that it may be committed by proxies or individuals either knowingly or unknowingly working on behalf of a foreign state.

Laurence Taylor says the five men arrested near RAF Fairford are being released on police bail following "extensive interviews".

We'll bring you more on this shorty.

Counter Terrorism Policing (CTP) is about to provide its latest update on the RAF Fairford incident, after earlier confirming the five men arrested were all British nationals from London.

Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor, head of CTP, is due to speak outside New Scotland Yard.

You can watch live at the top of this page and we'll be providing text updates here.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham says he will chair a Cobra meeting this afternoon following the incident at RAF Fairford.

Speaking to LBC, the PM says he wants to get the "full picture", after five British nationals were arrested over the weekend in a suspected plot to attack the airbase - which is used by the British and US air forces.

"I want to thank the police, the Gloucestershire Police, the security services, the emergency services, the public who alerted us, so thank you to everybody for the way that they’ve worked," Burnham adds.

Image source, PA Media

Image source, EPA/Shutterstock

We've been contacted by a resident whose family is currently hosting some evacuees who've been displaced by what's happened at RAF Fairford.

He wants to remain anonymous, but has told us the householders are "shaken" and "keen to return home".

"Although the community spirit and local support have been exceptional, we have been unable to obtain updates as to what is occurring at the scene," he tells the BBC's Your Voice.

Local access roads have been closed since the major incident was declared, he says.

"The general consensus in the area, based on local social media posts, is that if not for locals keeping vigilant, things could have been much worse.

"The situation is not being helped by various political outlets and individuals finger-pointing when nothing has been proven as yet. This is only continuing to further the cause of those that would look to sow division and fear."

He says he hopes people will be allowed home to stock up on essentials and check on their pets and farm animals.

Christopher Mace
West of England

Roz Savage, the MP for South Cotswolds, is calling for clarity on the chain of events at RAF Fairford sooner rather than later.

"There does seem to be two incompatible accounts of who knew what and when," she says.

"The president (Donald Trump) is saying this was all coordinated, but it seems people here and on the ground and local police were not aware of a joint intelligence operation. These are the answers that we absolutely have to get.

“It actually makes my blood run cold when I think how close we may have come to disaster this weekend," she adds.

The MP says she will write to the prime minister and the defence secretary with her concerns.

“Ever since it was first announced six months ago that RAF Fairford was going to be used as the base for US military airstrikes on Iran, I’ve been asking questions of the Government about whether they can assure my residents, my constituents, of their safety,” she said.

“They had given that assurance, however, I feel that the events of this weekend do cast that into doubt."

She adds that the ramp up in activity at RAF Fairford since March has been disruptive to people living nearby.

"The noise of the jets going over, the pollution from the aviation fuel, and also that general anxiety of living next to a live military base that is launching operations into the Middle East," she says.

Since March, the United States Air Force has used the base for defensive strikes on Iran.

Image source, Getty Images

Speaking publicly for the first time since yesterday's arrests, the US military unit based at RAF Fairford says it is remaining "vigilant".

"For operational security reasons, we will not discuss specific force protection measures.

"The 100th Air Refueling Wing remains vigilant and will take appropriate actions to ensure the safety and security of our US service members, civilians, contractors, and their families across the European theatre.

"We constantly assess a variety of factors that determine what measures we institute or modify to protect our installations, our people and their families," the 100th Air Refueling Wing tells the BBC.

Bea Swallow
Live page reporter

While investigations continue at RAF Fairford, residents are still reeling from an abrupt evacuation in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Cotswold District Council leader Mike Evemy says the authority has arranged hotel accommodation for 28 people, alongside supporting about 60 people with food, drinks and information at Cirencester Leisure Centre.

This emergency respite centre has since been relocated to the council's chambers.

"We have also helped ensure residents can access essential medication and liaised closely with the police to help make sure pets left behind in evacuated homes are being looked after," Evemy says.

“At this stage, we have not been given confirmation of when residents will be able to return home.

"As a precaution, we are making arrangements to extend hotel accommodation for those who need it so everyone has somewhere to stay until we know more."

Geeta Guru-Murthy
Presenter, BBC News Channel

Kirsty Payne, who has lived in the area for 20 years, says aviation enthusiasts have "flocked" to RAF Fairford to catch a glimpse of military bombers on the runway since the US began operating from the base in March.

She explains this has made it difficult to differentiate between innocent plane spotters and those with more sinister motives.

"In peaceful times, we’re a very sleepy community and we have regular patrols but this is a whole different kettle of fish since the war started," she says.

"We obviously realise that we might be a bit of a target now, with the American activity.

"I suspect resources aren’t capable of patrolling the whole area so, of course, it is a concern for people who live in close proximity."

Image source, EPA/Shutterstock

But it was a chance encounter on Friday morning that she says left her with an unsettling gut feeling.

At about 05:30 BST, while leaving for a trip to London, Payne noticed a man "jumping out of the bushes" near the airbase, skulking through the "pitch black" wearing a backpack.

"We’re such a close-knit community so we do notice things that are out of the ordinary," she says.

"He pointed out that he wasn’t looking for the runway - he wanted to avoid the runway - which sounded suspicious to me."

Payne says she quickly reported the incident to police.

"I don’t know if he’s part of the investigation or not," she says.

As well as the cordons around the scene, there are further restrictions in the air above RAF Fairford.

These new restrictions - called a Notam, or notice to airmen - mean that nobody can fly within a five mile (8km) zone encircling the Cotswold base without permission.

Banned items also include balloons, kites, parachutes and paragliders.

Fiona Lamdin
Home affairs correspondent, BBC West

I’ve had an interesting chat with Dr Patrick Bury, a professor in Warfare and Counter-Terrorism at Bath University.

“Something was clearly afoot” at the base, he says, with residents seeing heavy plant machinery being moved in, alongside additional concrete barriers and large trucks strategically positioned near the gates.

“And if you look at how tight lipped the security service and government are being, it would suggest they are taking it very seriously," Bury added.

Image source, Getty Images

The Iranian embassy in London has said it "categorically rejects" speculation linking the country to the arrests of five men near RAF Fairford.

In a statement posted on X, the embassy writes it "strongly condemns the recent unfounded and malicious speculations published by some British individuals and media outlets".

It adds: "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."

The embassy adds that the "Islamic Republic of Iran reserves the right to take appropriate legal measures, as necessary, to safeguard the rights and interests of the country and its people in response to misleading and damaging media narratives".

Emma Hallett
Reporting from the scene

The farmer who called 999 after spotting a large group of masked men in the early hours of Sunday has also revealed her neighbour was stopped outside the base by armed guards hours before.

She tells the BBC that her neighbour phoned her "in tears" after she had tried to drive home at around 20:00 BST on Saturday.

"She was stopped outside the main gates of the airbase... it was armed American personnel. They were incredibly aggressive," she says.

"She had her children in the car, and they made them all put their hands out of the car, shouted at her to put her car in neutral, even though it was a manual," she adds.

"She was really upset. And in the end, they had to turn round. They couldn't drive that way to their own house."

Matty Edwards
Live page reporter

Claire Locke, executive director of corporate services at Cotswold District Council, tells the BBC that residents were "understandably quite anxious" when they were evacuated from Whelford.

"But actually a lot of them knew each other so there was a really good sense of support amongst the community," she says.

The council offered support to residents from about 80 households at the leisure centre they were taken to in Cirencester, she says.

They were given food, drink and any medication they had left at home.

"Quite a lot of people brought their pets too so we had to support people with that," she says.

"We supported quite a number of people overnight and provided them with hotel accommodation."

The council says 28 people were given hotel rooms and it was ready to provide more rooms tonight if required.