From jail in New York, Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, a dual Iranian-Iraqi national, allegedly coordinated with Mohammad Ali al-Hassani and Mohsen Mohajeri, an Iraqi and Iranian national, respectively, to organize the recent failed terror attack on RAF Fairford, according to a recent Department of Justice release.

The three men allegedly conspired to commit nearly 20 terrorist attacks and attempted attacks across Europe and the U.S. in the name of two Iran-aligned terrorist networks that are designated by the U.S. as Foreign Terrorist Organizations, per an eight-count indictment.

“Even after one of their co-conspirators was arrested and placed in federal custody, the defendants allegedly continued coordinating terrorist activity through coded communications and a network of associates overseas,” U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald for the Southern District of New York said in the release. “The threat presented by Iran and Iran-backed terrorist groups to America and our allies is not hypothetical — it is very real.” 

The indictment says that most recently, al-Hassani, with terrorism-related offenses for their activities in support of Kataib Hezbollah and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, allegedly managed the September plot on RAF Fairford, which housed U.S. military aircraft and personnel at the time in support of the war in Iran.

In the Southern District of New York, al-Saadi was in jail awaiting trial on pending terrorism charges and tried to correspond with al-Hassani and Mohajeri by passing coded messages through third parties. Al-Hassani and Mohajeri were both in Iran at the time of the attempted RAF Fairford scheme, so they relied on a network of contacts in the U.K., per the statement.

Al-Saadi was charged in May for collaborating with and working on behalf of the IRGC, other FTOs and Kataib Hezbollah, an Iraqi militia group that he is the commander of and that is backed by the IRGC. He was also charged for his participation in planning and promoting around 18 terrorist attacks in Europe and for attempting to bomb a synagogue in New York.

The indictment alleges that al-Hassani and Mohajeri, an operative of the IRGC, worked with al-Saadi to facilitate and complete many of the European terrorist attacks. Al-Hassani used his contacts and criminal associates to carry out attacks in the U.K., prosecutors allege.

Al-Saadi was arrested abroad in early May and transferred to U.S. custody for prosecution, staying in federal custody since his arrival in the U.S. For four months following his arrest, there were no additional attacks attributed to the three men.

Then in August, prosecutors say that al-Hassani directed and paid associates in the U.K. to conduct “preparatory steps” for the RAF Fairford plot, such as surveillance of the base’s perimeter. The next month, he also paid several people to assist in the plot’s preparation, like procuring vans and barrels of fuel, researching chemical accelerants and purchasing items that could be used as explosive shrapnel.

In late September, al-Hassani supposedly told individuals to drive three vans, some with barrels of fuel inside, to RAF Fairford, but at least two encountered a security roadblock and were not able to continue to the base. U.K. law enforcement authorities later recovered three white vans and arrested the individuals. 

While in jail, al-Saadi allegedly used phone calls with his family in Iraq to pass coded messages to al-Hassani and Mohajeri in the days leading up to the RAF Fairford plot. Three days before the attempted plot, al-Saadi spoke with his family on the phone and inquired about how al-Hassani was doing, telling them to give him money so “we can do it.”

The eight-count indictment lists six charges for all three with a total maximum penalty of 90 years in prison or life in prison, and two charges reserved only for al-Saadi, with a maximum of 20 years or life in prison.

The four-day poll, completed on Monday, showed 71% of Americans — including 93% of Democrats and 51% of Republicans — want U.S. Congress to pass legislation ending the conflict with Iran that Trump launched alongside U.S. ally Israel in February.

Democrats won their largest majorities in the Senate and House of Representatives since at least 2008 in last week’s midterm elections, in a sharp rebuke to Trump’s Republicans over high costs and a deeply unpopular war. Democrats will take power when the new Congress is sworn in on January 3.

A smaller but still-significant share of respondents — 62% — said they would support an effort to repeal tariffs on imports put in place by the Trump administration.

The war with Iran has pushed fuel prices sharply higher, adding to inflation already stoked by the new taxes Trump slapped on hundreds of imported goods. Trump has defended the war as necessary to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. The tariffs, he has said, will boost American industry by protecting it from cheap imports.

Democratic Party leaders have vowed to address cost of living concerns, and say they will try to force an end to the US war with Iran. Many in the party have also vowed to end Trump’s tariffs.

Desire for bipartisanship

Large majorities of people in both political parties said it was important for Trump to make an effort to work with Democrats and for Democratic leaders in the new Congress to try to work with the president.

Nine in 10 respondents said cost of living issues should be a focus for the Congress during its first 100 days. Smaller shares wanted a focus on issues like artificial intelligence regulation, immigration reform and climate change.

Opposition to impeachment

But many Americans appear concerned Democrats will use their new power to launch legal proceedings against Trump. Some 42% of poll respondents said it would be “bad for the country” if the new Congress tried to impeach Trump, compared with 33% who said it would be good for the country. The rest weren’t sure or didn’t answer the question.

Congressional Democrats are divided on how to bring down healthcare costs, and also disagree on how aggressively to target Trump, including whether to impeach the president or members of his cabinet. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is expected to face a House impeachment vote this week, following a move by a Republican lawmaker.

While Trump said after the elections he would “probably” get along with Democrats, he also promoted Stephen Miller, a polarizing aide who has called the Democratic Party a domestic extremist group, to be his new White House chief of staff.

While the poll showed Trump’s approval rating near the lowest level of his political career, at 32%, it also showed Democrats were not particularly popular either.

Some 45% of Americans had a favorable view of Democrats, while 51% had an unfavorable view. Some 35% had a favorable view of Republicans and 60% viewed them unfavorably.

Asked which party had a better approach to regulating artificial intelligence, which could be an important issue for Congress in the coming months, 28% picked Democrats and 20% picked Republicans while the rest said they weren’t sure or that neither was better.

The Reuters/Ipsos poll, which was conducted online and nationwide, gathered responses from 1,705 U.S. adults and had a margin of error of about 2 percentage points.

The department published a notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement that will assess “potential social, economic, and environmental effects” of training and operations at Saipan International Airport, Tinian International Airport, Tinian North Field and Rota International Airport. The islands are part of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, an unincorporated U.S. territory. 

The proposed training and exercises will support the Air Force’s Agile Combat Operations concept, which emphasizes dispersal of forces across airfields and the ability to maneuver between them while sustaining operations under a range of conditions, with the goal of thwarting an adversary’s ability to shut down those operations by targeting a single base. ACE, as it’s known, has developed largely in response to the Chinese military’s growing reach and expanding missile arsenal. 

The notice said the four airfields provide “a unique opportunity” to support ACE, with infrastructure that varies from “fully developed commercial airfields to expeditionary operating locations.” The three islands are within a few dozen nautical miles of each other, which would allow for training that reflects the complexity of distributed operations while reducing transit time between them. They are less than 100 nautical miles north of the major military bases on Guam, another U.S. territory, which would support the staging and deployment of forces for those exercises. 

The three airfields “collectively provide a training environment that enables [the Air Force] to exercise distributed operations, test and employ tailorable force packages, strengthen sustainment and maneuver capabilities, and enhance operational resilience,” the notice reads. 

The environmental impact statement will evaluate the potential effects of the proposed activities, which include small, medium and large trainings and exercises held several times a year for a few weeks at a time and consisting of up to 1,200 fixed-wing and 320 rotary-wing operations, like takeoffs and landings, annually at each airfield. It will also assess an alternative scenario with up to 1,400 fixed-wing and 384 rotary-wing operations per airfield annually and a “No Action Alternative.” 

The trainings and exercises would be supported by up to 550,000 gallons of fuel at each airfield, up to 1,000 personnel per airfield, the temporary installation of expeditionary infrastructure, the handling of munitions like chaff and flares, as well as support services and pre-and post-training and exercise activities. 

The proposed activity comes after several years of work to upgrade the airfields in question, especially the airfields on Tinian, which were built and heavily used during WWII. North Field was inactive after the war and was largely covered with vegetation when the rehabilitation effort began in late 2023. The Air Force also upgraded port and roadway infrastructure, fuel pipelines and airfield surfaces, and utilities to facilitate expanded operations on Tinian. 

The airfield rehabilitation efforts have created some questions among Air Force leaders about resourcing and funding, particularly as the war with Iran has placed new demands on the force. Island residents also have misgivings about the projects. While some welcome the investment that the construction and military operations will bring, others have doubts that the increased activity will really benefit the islands’ populations and that the Pentagon will be transparent about its activity and responsive to local concerns. 

The Department of the Air Force will hold public meetings this month on Saipan, Tinian and Rota to get feedback on the proposal, with written comments due by Nov. 29. The department plans to produce a draft environmental impact statement for public comment in fall 2027 and a final version in mid-2028. 

The Royal International Air Tattoo will move from RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, England, to MOD Boscombe Down in Wiltshire after four decades at its longtime home, organizers announced Wednesday.

Following discussions with the Royal Air Force and the U.S. Air Force, organizers canceled the 2026 air show in late May, calling it a difficult decision that was prompted by “uncertainty” over access to RAF Fairford given the base’s involvement with the war in Iran. 

The U.S. Air Force housed a dozen B-1B Lancers at RAF Fairford during Operation Epic Fury to use in strikes against Iranian missile sites that were attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

But following the suspected terrorist plot targeting the base, the U.S. promptly removed all bombers from the installation and returned them back to their home stations.

British officials said there are “strong indications” that Iran was involved in the late September suspected plot targeting the base, but Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi denied the accusation on social media. Five men were initially arrested and released on bail. Two men were rearrested and charged under the U.K. National Security Act.

Although the organizers did not cite the plot at RAF Fairford as the reason for the move, they described the relocation essential for the air show’s long-term future.

“The decision to move RIAT to Boscombe Down is about much more than a new location,” RAF Charitable Trust Chief Executive Gavin Gager said in the announcement. “It is about securing the future of the world’s greatest military airshow and the charitable impact it generates for future generations.”

The air show usually attracts more than 150,000 spectators. Its first show at MOD Boscombe Down is scheduled for July 16 to 18.

MOD Boscombe Down is a British military airfield used for aircraft testing and evaluation. It hosts two air squadrons and six units.

The two airmen are listed under the “non-hostile” category in the Pentagon’s recently updated Defense Casualty Analysis System, or DCAS, meaning their deaths are not related to direct combat operations. One of the deaths was illness- or injury-related, and the other is listed as “pending,” according to the DCAS.

One airman was an active-duty service member, an Air Force spokesperson told Military Times, while the other was in the Air National Guard.

Although typical Department of Defense policy dictates that the names of deceased service members be released to the public 24 hours after next of kin notifications, the Air Force has yet to announce their identities. The spokesperson declined to comment on why their names have been withheld thus far and if the service has been in contact with their families.

Both airmen were white men and mid- to senior-enlisted personnel in E5 to E9 grades, according to DCAS. One was between 31 and 35, while the other was over 35.

One of the airmen passed away in the U.S. Central Command’s area of responsibility, which spans from Northeast Africa across the Middle East to Central and South Asia, the spokesperson said.

The other airman died in the United States; however, the spokesperson declined to comment on where the second airman was operating out of and how they were transported to the U.S.

CENTCOM referred Military Times to the Air Force when asked for comment.

The airman whose death is listed as “pending” is under investigation currently, the spokesperson said, but did not specify by which department.

Another service member whose death was listed as “pending” in DCAS was an Army captain who suffered a medical incident while aboard a military flight on the way to Saudi Arabia in late September.

DCAS lists both of the airmen’s deaths under the Overseas Operations category, instead of Operation Epic Fury, with a Pentagon official telling Military Times it is because the U.S. deems Epic Fury as concluded. The Overseas Operations lists the start date as July 7, aligned with the continued U.S. pressure campaign against Iran.

Officials have been tight-lipped on the exact date Epic Fury was considered terminated, but a defense official previously specified May 5 to Military Times.

The Pentagon’s classification of the operation as an Overseas Operation category faced criticism from Democratic members of Congress, who accused Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth of trying to hide the casualties.

The Overseas Operation category now includes eight service members: four listed as hostile and four as non-hostile. Combining the two categories together makes for a total of 23 service members who have lost their lives since the war in Iran began on Feb. 28, with the Epic Fury category listing 15. 

In total, 866 service members have been wounded in action since the war’s beginning across both categories. That includes 417 under Operation Epic Fury and 449 in Overseas Operations, according to DCAS.

Hubbard was serving a roughly seven-year sentence after being accused by Russia in 2022 of working with Ukraine as a mercenary. American President Donald Trump announced his release from prison on social media, saying it was out of respect for the president and nothing was asked of the U.S. in return.

“This release was not part of an exchange — and we extend our thanks to President Putin for releasing him on President Trump’s request,” Special Envoy Steve Witkoff said on social media after he retrieved Hubbard in St. Petersburg.

Hubbard, 74, was an active-duty airman beginning in March 1974, an Air Force spokesperson told Military Times. He was an Airman 1st Class as an apprentice administration specialist, with his last duty station at Mather Air Force Base, California. He separated from the service in March 1978.

Mather closed as a military base in 1993 and is now operational as the Sacramento Mather Airport.

After active duty, Hubbard served in the Air National Guard, but due to the age of the records, information regarding his role as a guardsman in the force’s system is sparse, the spokesperson said.

The National Guard did not return a request for comment.

Although Trump said “no swap” was necessary for Hubbard’s release, he told reporters outside the White House and in a subsequent social media post that if he placed sanctions on Russia, Hubbard’s release would not have occurred.

He said that people who “don’t know how life works” questioned his decision to waive sanctions on Russia during the negotiations to release Hubbard.

“If I would’ve done that, you would not have Mr. Hubbard coming back,” he told reporters.

“If you would’ve put those sanctions on, or whatever you want to call them, you could forget about him, you’d never see him again,” he continued. “He’d be back in jail for 25 years.”

Hubbard’s release comes less than a week after Trump prevented new sanctions on Russia, which were intended to target the country’s largest buyers of oil and gas, drawing criticism from members of Congress who support the legislation and Ukraine.

Alongside Hubbard, the administration has negotiated the release of other Americans from Russian custody since returning to office last year, including Robert Gilman, Ksenia Karelina and Marc Fogel, Witkoff said.

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., visited the Middle East this week on a Congressional Delegation trip, speaking with Gulf region leaders and visiting American facilities to assess damage done by the Iran war. Murphy was denied access to Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, which had suffered damage from drone strikes during the conflict.

“They are using every tool they can, including withholding information about damages, slow walking the pace of reports about casualties and denying us access to see the damage as part of a campaign of cover-up, so as to mask the true cost of the war,” Murphy told reporters on Thursday.

The “unprecedented” base denial prepared Murphy, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Defense Appropriations Committee, in the coming days to draft language that would explicitly require the Department of Defense to grant members of Congress access to military bases overseas under all circumstances if needed.

“I don’t have any illusions that that’s going to pass between now and the end of the year, but I think that’ll be a really important part of the discussion around an appropriations bill next year and the defense authorization bill,” he said during the press call.

Prior to his trip, Murphy requested access to the base through a letter and direct appeal to U.S. Central Command leadership. But he was denied access even as the Department of State supported his trip to the region, with the Defense Department saying it was due to previously imposed travel restrictions.

“Senator Murphy’s office was informed before his trip to the Middle East that he would not receive Department of War support to access Al Udeid Air Base, consistent with the Secretary of War’s directive on travel restrictions in the region ordered on March 3, 2026,” a senior Defense Department official told Military Times on Thursday.

“That decision was communicated in advance by the Office of the Secretary of War for Legislative Affairs,” the official continued. “The Department applies the Secretary’s guidance evenly.”

In early March, the State and Defense departments issued travel guidance, calling on Americans to depart areas in the region and updating its travel advisory to recommend against visiting certain countries, including Qatar.

“It is absolutely ordinary for members of Congress to travel to areas of conflict and get to talk directly to the military leaders and the soldiers that are involved in the conflict and see for ourselves the damage that has been done to our bases and equipment,” Murphy said, highlighting how during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars he was able to visit operating bases.

He argued that since Congress decides funding and authorization for war, it is necessary to see the consequences, but he was unable to visit Al Udeid or have a briefing on the war with American military officials while in the region.

On the same day the travel advisory was issued in March, the U.S. embassy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, was hit ​by two Iranians drones, resulting in building damage and a fire. Murphy said that the drones impacted multiple floors of the embassy and part of the space is now “uninhabitable” with permanent damage.

The U.S. previously announced in 2023 plans to build a new embassy compound in Riyadh, which Murphy attributes the lack of repairs to.

Even though no injuries or casualties were reported from the strike, Murphy said that if the attack happened during the day it would have killed many Americans.

“[Secretary of Defense Pete] Hegseth is determined to hide the cost and the consequences of this war from the American public, and it is absolutely outrageous that I and Republican senators are being denied the ability to see the damage for ourselves,” he said.

The U.S. military, the highest-funded in the world, suffered material damage even before Iran’s strikes on Tuesday. This includes the destruction of more than two dozen drones, Iran striking fighter jets, and aircraft being lost to accidents.

According to a May report from the Congressional Research Service, 42 U.S. military aircraft had already been lost or damaged in the conflict.

Since the Iran war started in February, 18 U.S. service members have been killed and over 800 injured.

A U.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Iran’s attack hit one A-10 Thunderbolt II, known as the Warthog, leaving it with a missing wing, while roughly eight F-15s sustained light damage and were returned to service.

Iran’s strike on the U.S. base in Jordan came after U.S. forces said they destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers. The U.S. said its strikes were in response to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targeting a U.S. Navy warship with ballistic ​missiles twice over the previous two days.

The Iranian attack required U.S. forces to fire roughly 30 Patriot interceptors to counter the missiles, the U.S. official said, amid increasing concern about the inventory of U.S. air defense interceptors and other missiles.

While specific inventory numbers are classified, the Center for Strategic ​and International Studies has estimated that about 65% of U.S. Patriot interceptors were expended between February and July, with fewer than 850 left on hand, down from 2,330 before the Iran war began.

In July, Trump unexpectedly left the NATO summit in Turkey on a different plane, citing a potential threat as the conflict with Iran escalated. He switched to a smaller military aircraft in secret, using a catering truck for deception.

The swap raised further questions about the modified Qatari jet’s security as a presidential aircraft. That same month, Trump announced that the jet would be soon sent to be “maxed out” for security upgrades.

Trump said the alterations would begin in roughly a month, but no official statement has been made about the schedule.

“We don’t comment on specific upgrades or modifications to Air Force One,” a senior administration official told Military Times. “We maintain a consistent posture that ensures a safe, secure, and reliable capability for the President of the United States and routinely evolve the capability as required to maintain that posture.”

Trump will be in Ireland on Sept. 12 and 13, attending the Irish Open at his golf course in Doonbeg. The BBC reported that he is scheduled to meet Irish President Catherine Connolly and Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin during his two-day trip.

Ahead of the midterm elections, Trump is also scheduled to headline the Republican midterm convention next week in Texas, and he has promised to campaign for Republican candidates across dozens of battleground states.

Libby Klinner, the wife of Alex Klinner, turned to social media to share the story of her husband’s passing and the struggles her family was facing in receiving certain additional benefits since the federal government did not officially declare war on Iran.

U.S. Air Force Maj. John “Alex” Klinner, 33, of Auburn, Alabama, was among the six killed on March 12 when a KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed over western Iraq during combat operations against Iran. Klinner was the chief of Squadron Standardizations and Evaluations within the 99th Air Refueling Squadron, located in Birmingham, Alabama.

He entered the Air Force in 2017 and deployed in 2019, 2020, 2022 and 2026 for a range of missions — flying 362 combat hours and 181 combat support hours in theater. His achievements include the Air Medal with oak leaf cluster, Aerial Achievement Medal and Air and Space Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster.

Recently, Libby posted on Instagram that her casualty assistance officer told her that additional combat-related benefits, such as Hostile Fire Pay or Imminent Danger Pay and Combat Zone Tax Exclusions, could not be given to her family because the U.S. has not officially declared war against the Middle East country.

“The Air Force recently told me that because we haven’t officially declared war, my kids and I aren’t eligible for some benefits,” Libby wrote. “So not only was my husband killed in a war he never wanted to participate in, but now the benefits we’re left with are being dictated by semantics and public perceptions.”

In a later post, Libby said that the director of mortuary affairs reached out to her to audit the benefits.

On Thursday, Vance said the administration would reach out to Libby directly to ensure she receives “what she is entitled to.”

“We will certainly work that on the back end,” Vance told reporters in a White House briefing.

Libby did not return a request for comment from Military Times.

Libby has since taken down her personal Instagram with the original posts, but a statement of hers circulated social media on Thursday, saying “classification issues” caused the combat-related benefits to not be available for her family.

“That was the information I shared publicly at the time,” Libby wrote. “As the story spread, however, it created the impression that our family’s military benefits had been broadly denied or withheld, which was not the case.”

She said that the Department of Defense has since completed its review and confirmed her family’s benefits. Libby wrote that the experience highlights how challenging it can be to navigate classifications, terminology and government processes during a time of grief.

“No Gold Star family should have to become an expert in government language to understand what they are entitled to,” she said.

“Getting this right for the families left behind isn’t a footnote—it’s part of how we honor the service and sacrifice of those we lost,” she concluded.

Department of the Air Force officials spoke with Libby on Monday to address her questions and ensure she is receiving all eligible benefits her and her family are entitled to, an Air Force spokesperson told Military Times on Friday.

The spokesperson said that officials confirmed that all eligible combat theater benefits were included in the areas of pay she already received, including Imminent Danger Pay or Hostile Fire Pay and Combat Zone Tax Exclusion benefits.

Alongside other benefits spouses retain, Hostile Fire Pay, at the rate of $225 per month, is given when a service member is killed, injured or wounded by hostile fire, explosion of a mine or other hostile actions. Imminent Danger Pay, $7.50 for each day on official duty in a designated area up to $225 a month, is given when an airman is ordered to fly in an airspace designated as an imminent danger for a mission.

Service members can receive one pay or the other but not both. When a service member is entitled to one form of pay, they may also be eligible for Combat Zone Tax Exclusion, which excludes certain pay from their taxable income.

The Air Force spokesperson did not say which pay the Klinner family is entitled to.

The Department of Defense also provides a one-time, tax-free sum of $100,000 as a Death Gratuity to survivors of members of the armed forces who died while on active duty or in certain statuses.