The Hindu : International : Iran seizes 15 British soldiers

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Saturday, Mar 24, 2007
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International

Iran seizes 15 British soldiers

London demands immediate release of its naval personnel

— PHOTO: AP

IN HOT WATERS: British soldiers patrol the Shatt Al Arab waterway on the outskirts of Basra, Iraq, in this January 2005 file photo.

DUBAI: Iranian naval vessels on Friday seized 15 British sailors who had boarded a merchant ship in Iraqi waters of the Persian Gulf, British and U.S. officials said. Britain immediately protested the incident, which comes at a time of high tension between the West and Iran.

Iran had no immediate comment about the incident. In London, the British Government summoned the Iranian ambassador and demanded ``the immediate and safe return of our people and equipment.''

Unharmed

The U.S. Navy, which operates off the Iraqi coast along with British forces, said the British sailors appeared unharmed and that Iran's Revolutionary Guard naval forces were responsible.

Britain's Defence Ministry said the British Navy personnel were ``engaged in routine boarding operations of merchant shipping in Iraqi territorial waters,'' and had completed a ship inspection when they were accosted by the Iranian vessels.

``We are urgently pursuing this matter with the Iranian authorities at the highest level,'' the ministry said. No one could be immediately reached for comment at either Government offices in Iran or at the Iranian embassy in Baghdad or at the U.N. mission. Iran is in the middle of its New Year holiday when almost all Government offices close. A U.S. official said the incident occurred just outside a long-disputed waterway called the Shatt al-Arab dividing Iraq and Iran.

It came as tensions were running high in the Persian Gulf after Iran's defiance of U.N. Security Council orders to rollback on its nuclear programme and U.S. allegations that Iran is arming Shia militias in Iraq.

U.S. officials had expressed concern that with so much military hardware concentrated in the Persian Gulf, just such a small incident could spiral out of control and trigger a major armed confrontation.

White House press secretary Tony Snow said the Bush administration was monitoring the situation.

``The British Government is demanding the immediate safe return of the people and equipment and we are keeping watch on the situation,'' Mr. Snow said. The U.S. has built up its naval forces in the Gulf in a show of strength directed at Iran. — AP

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