UK police arrest several under explosives act in 'major incident' near US air base

LONDON -- British police announced on Sunday morning that several people were arrested "on suspicion of offenses under the explosives act" close to a major air base hosting U.S. forces in the southwest of England.

"A number of properties are currently being evacuated in the Whelford area following the declaration of a major incident," Gloucestershire Police said in a statement. "It follows the arrest of several men on suspicion of offenses under the explosives act."

The village of Whelford is located around 2 miles from RAF Fairford, which hosts the U.S. Air Force and has since February been serving as a key hub for American operations against Iran -- including for heavy bombers like the B-1 Lancer and B-52 Stratofortress.

"The Army's specialist explosive ordnance disposal team are currently examining a number of vehicles," the police statement said.

Local residents were evacuated to a nearby recreation center, with a cordon put in place. "We believe this incident is contained," police said. "We are working closely with our partners and are enacting the well-rehearsed plans we have in place."

A British government spokesperson told ABC News that Prime Minister Andy Burnham "is being kept updated on the incident in Gloucestershire."

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"We are grateful to the emergency services, who have acted quickly to detain several suspects and put measures in place to keep the community safe," they added. "It would be inappropriate to comment further whilst investigations are ongoing."

British Defense Secretary Wes Streeting said in a post to X, "We can be reassured that this is being dealt with, and it is exactly why our emergency response teams and Armed Forces are on standby 24/7."

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood also posted to X thanking the emergency services "for their swift response to the major incident in Gloucestershire this morning and their reassurance that they believe the incident is contained."

ABC News' Rashid Haddou-Riffi, Guy Davies, Lama Hasan and Kevin Shalvey contributed to this report.