Iranian man released after alleged attempt to enter UK submarine base

LONDON, March 23 (Reuters) – An Iranian man who was arrested last week for allegedly attempting to enter Britain’s nuclear submarine base in Scotland has been released pending further inquiries, Scottish prosecutors said on Monday.

The 34-year-old man was arrested on Thursday alongside a 31-year-old Romanian woman after what Police Scotland had described as two people attempting to enter HM Naval Base Clyde, which is located on the west coast of Scotland.

Police Scotland on Saturday said that the pair were due to appear at Dumbarton Sheriff Court on Monday.

Scotland’s public prosecution service said in a statement, however, that it had decided “there should be no proceedings” against the 31-year-old woman, but that it reserves the right to proceed if further evidence becomes available.

The statement added that the 34-year-old man had been “liberated from custody pending further inquiries and did not appear in court”, with the case against him remaining live.

Their arrest came three weeks into the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. While Britain has not taken part in the attacks on Iran, the country’s forces have downed Iranian missiles and drones in the Gulf region.

HM Naval Base Clyde is key to Britain’s security, hosting the country’s nuclear-armed submarine fleet, as well as its attack submarines.

(Reporting by Sam Tobin. Editing by Andrew MacAskill)