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==Release==
==Release==
In what some have described as a publicity stunt, Iranian President [[Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]] unexpectedly announced the release of the captive service men and woman at the end of a long press conference on the afternoon of [[4 April]] [[2007]]<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/6526359.stm BBC account of Ahmadinejad press conference]</ref>. However the release was presented in such a way as to suggest that it was an Easter "gift" to the British people and not a surrender to British Government pressure and diplomacy; to this end the captives were not released to British consular officials but placed directly aboard flight BA6634, a direct flight to the UK, on the morning of [[5 April]] [[2007]],<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/6528235.stm BBC report of the release.]</ref> landing at about 12 noon local time.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6529193.stm Captured navy crew land in London - BBC]</ref>
Iranian President [[Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]] unexpectedly announced the release of the captive service men and woman at the end of a long press conference on the afternoon of [[4 April]] [[2007]]<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/6526359.stm BBC account of Ahmadinejad press conference]</ref>. However the release was presented in such a way as to suggest that it was an Easter "gift" to the British people and not a surrender to British Government pressure and diplomacy; to this end the captives were not released to British consular officials but placed directly aboard flight BA6634, a direct flight to the UK, on the morning of [[5 April]] [[2007]],<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/6528235.stm BBC report of the release.]</ref> landing at about 12 noon local time.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6529193.stm Captured navy crew land in London - BBC]</ref>


==2004 incident==
==2004 incident==

Revision as of 11:44, 5 April 2007


File:Alalam-british-soldiers.jpg
This image of the detainees was released by the Al-Alam News Network on March 30, 2007.

The 2007 Iranian seizure of Royal Navy personnel occurred on 23 March 2007 when fifteen British Royal Navy personnel, from HMS Cornwall, were surrounded and detained by the Navy of the Army of the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution off the Iraq-Iran coast. The fifteen personnel were released on April 4 2007. The team of eight sailors and seven Royal Marines in two rigid-hulled inflatable boats had been searching a merchant vessel for smuggled automobiles when they were detained at 10:30 Iraqi time (07:30 GMT; 11:00 Iranian time) by six boats. They were subsequently taken to a Revolutionary Guards Corps base in Tehran for questioning.[1][2]

Intense diplomatic efforts were made to secure the release of the detainees. On March 28, 2007 television channels around the world showed footage released by the Iranian government of some of the 15 British sailors. This included a statement by captured Royal Navy sailor Faye Turney, along with a letter she allegedly wrote, which apologised for British intrusions into Iranian waters.[3] Over the next two days a further video was shown on Iranian television displaying three of the detained British naval personnel and two further letters, again attributed to Faye Turney, were released, again admitting the British boats were in Iranian waters.[4] Iran has stated that an apology from British officials would "facilitate" the release of the personnel.[5]

The United Kingdom Government stated that the team had been conducting a compliance inspection of a merchant ship under the mandate of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1723. The merchantman had aroused suspicion while moving along the Arvandrud/Shatt al-Arab waterway. HMS Cornwall was part of the British contribution to multinational forces engaged in maritime security operations following the War in Iraq.[6]

On April 4, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad held a news conference to announce the release of the personnel as a "gift" to Britain, stating, "On the occasion of the birthday of the great prophet, and for the occasion of the passing of Christ, I say the Islamic Republic government and the Iranian people — with all powers and legal right to put the soldiers on trial — forgave those 15. This pardon is a "gift" to the British people."[7] Ahmadinejad reiterated the statement that Iranian waters had been invaded, and he praised the border guards who detained the British personnel. Abolqassem Amangah, commander of Iran's southwestern Maritime Border Patrol Guard was awarded the third degree medal of bravery for stopping the "intruding" sailors. Ahmadinejad also criticised the British government for sending the mother of a child to the battlefield, and asked the government "not to prosecute them for their 'confessions'". After the conference, the Britons met Ahmadinejad outside the presidential palace, where they reportedly showed their appreciation for their release.[8][9] Later Tony Blair said he was glad and stated that he "bears Iranian people no ill will". [10]

British personnel involved

The following are known to have been among the 15 Royal Navy and Royal Marines personnel detained on 23 March 2007:[4][11][12][13]

The Algiers Agreement (1975), ratified by both nations in 1976, remains in force.[14] It defined the Iran-Iraq international boundary in the Shatt al-Arab/Arvand by a series of precisely defined turning points closely approximating the 1975 thalweg or deepest channel, ending at point "R" in a waterway called the Khowr Abd Allah. Point "R", at 29°51′16″N 48°44′45″E / 29.85444°N 48.74583°E / 29.85444; 48.74583 (WGS84)[15] is about 16 km southeast of the tip of Iraq's Al-Faw peninsula at high tide. Point "R" is where the thalweg in 1975 was adjacent to the furthest point of exposed mud flats at "astronomical lowest low tide."[16][17] Point "R" thus constitutes the end of the land boundary of the two nations, despite being under water at all but the lowest tides.[14]

According to analysis by the International Boundary Research Unit (IBRU) at Durham University in the United Kingdom, the location provided by the UK Ministry of Defence for the location of the seizure is 3.1 km southwest of this Point "R" boundary terminus and 2.9 km south of this international boundary line. Thus the university says: "The point lies on the Iraqi side of…the agreed land boundary."[16][17] This has been challenged by Iran, whose second set of released co-ordinates were inside its waters. But the location provided by the UK Ministry is not in disputed territory according to IBRU, which says the boundary is disputed only beyond Point "R" (to the east and southeast). Confirming this, Richard Schofield, an expert in international boundaries at King's College London, stated "Iran and Iraq have never agreed to a boundary of their territorial waters. There is no legal definition of the boundary beyond the Shatt al-Arab."[18]

Former Head of the Maritime Section at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Craig Murray, has also written that an agreed Iran/Iraq maritime boundary, as shown on the British government provided map, does not exist. "There is no agreed maritime boundary between Iraq and Iran in the Persian Gulf. Until the current mad propaganda exercise of the last week, nobody would have found that in the least a controversial statement." He also noted that the location of the incident given by the Ministry of Defence is closer to Iranian than Iraqi land, and that "In international law the Iranian government were not out of order in detaining foreign military personnel in waters to which they have a legitimate claim". Murray was concerned that producing such a map, notably unfavourable to Iran, could only harden the Iranian position delaying the return of the captives. "He stressed that, equally, Iran could not say definitively that the UK crew had been in its waters."[18][19][20][21][22]

The 1975 treaty came into effect after being signed by both states in 1975 and ratified by both states in 1976. Under international law, one state cannot unilaterally reject a previously ratified treaty, and the treaty had no clause providing for abrogation by one state only. A joint commission should conduct a survey of the Shatt al Arab at least every 10 years.[15] No such survey appears to have taken place, so there could be a dispute as to whether the boundary follows the line defined in 1975 or the current thalweg of the river.[18][17] The IBRU contends that "it would need a dramatic reconfiguration of the coastline marked on current charts for the median line to run to the west of the point" at which MoD has stated the incident occurred, and so be in Iranian waters.[16][17]

While innocent passage is permitted in each other's waters, boarding and compliance inspections in another state's waters would not be lawful.[23]

Operational environment

RIB from HMS Cardiff, intercepting a cargo vessel off Iraq in 2002. Similar to those embarked in Cornwall.

HMS Cornwall is a Batch 3 Type 22 frigate, lead ship of the Cornwall class, which constitutes part of the British contribution to Combined Task Force 158. CTF158 controls Maritime Security Operations in the Northern Persian Gulf and includes Royal Navy, United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, Australian and Iraqi naval forces. The Task Force is currently commanded by Commodore Nick Lambert, embarked in HMS Cornwall with a staff from Commander United Kingdom Maritime Forces.[24][25]

On 23 March 2007 the two boats from HMS Cornwall with the boarding team, 14 men and one woman, conducted an unopposed boarding and compliance inspection of a merchant vessel suspected of smuggling automobiles. Following the inspection and after disembarking from the merchantman the team was detained by Iranian forces in six boats and escorted to an Iranian naval facility in the Shatt-al-Arab/Arvand waterway.

Journalists in HMS Cornwall reported that the British forces had chased and boarded a barge (or dhow) that had just offloaded vehicles from the merchant ship, and was heading toward Iranian waters. The merchant ship and barges, which had been observed the previous day when a barge was boarded, were suspected of smuggling.[26][27] The Ministry of Defence initially reported that the boarding team had been seized at around 10:30 local time (07:30 GMT).[28][29]

According to Britain, HMS Cornwall could not get closer to the merchant vessel because of shallow water. A Lynx helicopter monitoring the boarding had returned to HMS Cornwall, and by the time Cornwall realised what was happening the British team was already being escorted to shore by the Iranian border patrol.[30]

Media reporting indicates that warnings of an increased risk of action by Iran, in response to the detention of Iranian officials in Iraq, had been communicated to the UK by the US Central Intelligence Agency but had not resulted in an increase in the area threat levels.[31][32]

Rules of engagement

British armed forces are subject to rules of engagement which define acceptable limits on freedom of action for commanders. Extant ROE has been described by former First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Alan West as de-escalatory to avoid provoking an intensification of action.[33]

It was reported that the CTF158, Cdre Lambert, requested advice from the Ministry of Defence but was told to hold fire.[34]

British Prime Minister Tony Blair later said the attitude of the British forces had been "entirely sensible"; if they had fired there would "undoubtedly have been severe loss of life".[30]

Claims and reactions

British claims and reactions

Official briefings

The United Kingdom says the sailors were on a routine patrol of the area which was in accordance with United Nations Security Council Resolution 1723. The Ministry of Defence indicated that the sailors had boarded the vessel 1.7 nautical miles (3.1 km) inside Iraqi territorial waters at 29°50.36′N 48°43.08′E / 29.83933°N 48.71800°E / 29.83933; 48.71800. The Ministry of Defence has stated that one of the boats remained data-linked to HMS Cornwall throughout this time and the GPS system showed them to be located well within the Iraqi area, though no direct evidence for this was given. According to British authorities, this position was later confirmed by the Indian flagged merchant vessel, which, the Ministry of Defence indicated, had subsequently dragged east on its anchor to 29°50.174′N 48°43.544′E / 29.836233°N 48.725733°E / 29.836233; 48.725733 (as shown in the photograph released by the Ministry).[35][30]

Senior British military officers stated at a press conference on 29 March that there was no doubt where the dividing line between Iraqi and Iranian waters was, despite historic disputes between Iran and Iraq over these waters.[30]

Communication with the boarding team was lost at 09:10 and HMS Cornwall's Lynx helicopter returned to the scene immediately, having covered the initial stages of the operation. The pilot and the master of the merchant vessel stated that Iranian vessels surrounded the boarding team and escorted them away. The British boats were seen being taken up the Shatt-al-Arab/Arvand Waterway by Iranian Islamic Republican Guard Navy vessels.

According to the Ministry of Defence, the Iranian government provided two sets of co-ordinates for the incident, the first of which was inside Iraqi waters. The Ministry says that upon challenging the set, a second set of co-ordinates were provided indicating a position within Iranian waters less than a nautical mile (1.8 km) away from the first set.[35][36]

The British government demanded the return of the servicemen. Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett said, "we sought a full explanation of what happened and left the Iranian authorities in no doubt that we expect immediate and safe return of our service personnel and boats".

Prime Minister Tony Blair has denied the British boats were in Iranian waters and called the detainment "unjustified and wrong".[37]

Press and other coverage

The Times raised concerns about what it termed a hostage crisis with the headline "Hostage fears over troops seized by Iran" on its front page on 24 March.[38][39] The detainees are also being routinely described as "hostages" by certain other newspapers.[40][41][42]

Sections of the British press reacted angrily to the Iranian television footage of the detainees, particularly the prominence of servicewoman Faye Turney, and that she was seen wearing a head scarf.[43] According to Iranian laws, all females above the age of 13 are required to observe the Islamic dress code of Iran.[44]

Iranian claims and reactions

Official briefings

Iran's director general for Western European affairs, Ibrahim Rahimpour, said that the British boats had made "illegal entry" into Iranian territorial waters and that the personnel "were arrested by border guards for investigation and questioning".[45]

Mohammad Ali Hosseini, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman, voiced his country's discontent at what he called "blatant aggression", accusing the United Kingdom of "violating the sovereign boundaries of other states". He further stated that Britain was trying to cover up the incursion and that they should refrain from putting the blame on others.[46]

On 24 March, the Iranian Fars News Agency said the navigational equipment seized on the British boats shows the sailors were aware that they were operating in Iranian waters. On the same day, General Ali Reza Afshar, a top military official, said the sailors had confessed to illegal entry into Iran's waters.[46]

Iran's foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki said on 25 March that they were considering charging the British personnel with illegal entry into Iranian waters.[47]

On 29 March, Iranian navy displayed captured GPS devices, saying that they indicated the boats were 450 meters inside Iranian territorial waters at the time they were seized. It further stated: "After reading the information on their navigation equipment - the GPS seized from them - it was revealed that they had already intruded water borders of the Islamic Republic of Iran [5 times]".[48] The chart that was used in the demonstration is marked at 29°51′9″N 48°45′11″E / 29.85250°N 48.75306°E / 29.85250; 48.75306.[36]

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on 29 March the British troops in Basra have opened fire on the Iranian Consulate at 11:00 AM local time. It stated the troops besieged the consulate for two hours but no injury was reported. This attack has been denied by Britain. Major David Gell, British military spokesman in Basra, said the incident was "geographic coincidence" after a British convoy was fired on and returned fire near the consulate.[49][50][51]

On March 30 Iran's ambassador to Russia said "The legal phase concerning these British soldiers has started and if charges against them are proven, they will be punished". The ambassador did not specify what the legal moves were.[52][53] The ambassador suggested a diplomatic settlement was still possible "if Britain's government admits its mistake and apologises to Iran for its naval personnel's trespassing of Iranian territorial waters, the issue can be easily settled." He regretted that the British government had raised the issue into a crisis instead of trying to resolve the problem through diplomatic channels.[54]

On March 31 Iranian consulate in Basra said the British troops continue to carry out "provocative acts", reiterating their earlier statement regarding a British attack on the consulate. The consulate said there has been intensive flying of fighter aircraft over the consulate building. Al-Hayat newspaper reported that the actions might be a scare tactic to pressure Iran into releasing the detainees.[55]

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad commented on the seizure for the first time on March 31 by calling Britain "arrogant" for failing to apologise for entering Iranian waters.[56]

In a Press conference on 4 April 2007, President Ahmadinejad gave a history of Iran leading to an analysis of the Iranian view of world political asymmetry. He then continued to comment on the bravery and courage of the Iranian coastguard and then presented them all with the Medal of Honour. Further, President Ahmadinejad then attacked British forces for sending out a woman with a child as part of a military force. He then announced that the sailors would be released as a "gift" to Britain.[8]

Press and other coverage

The Persian Journal reports that the 1975 Algiers agreement that defines the current Iran-Iraq boundary does not delimit the border beyond the shoreline into the territorial seas in the Persian Gulf, where Iran and Iraq have different approaches to the method that should be used. Iran wishes to divide its maritime boundaries on the basis of the equidistance principle, whereas Iraq believes the entrance of the Persian Gulf requires special criteria. This incident may have happened in an area that both sides consider as their own territory. Military units may have the right of innocent passage in each other's waters, but this incident involved boarding and compliance inspection and was not simple innocent passage under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.[23]

Students from the Basij group, a paramilitary wing of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, have called for the Britons to be put on trial, while the editor of Iran News, Dr Ali Pahlavan, stated that the Revolutionary Guard felt that the United Kingdom and the United States needed to be challenged.[57]

On 1 April students from Tehran University protested outside the British embassy in the capital making speeches and throwing firecrackers and rocks into the embassy compound. A BBC correspondent reported they were chanting "death to England" and calling for a trial and apology. The crowd was dispersed by pepper spray fired by riot police.[58]

On 3 April British newspaper The Independent gave new details about earlier US raid which captured five Iranians in Arbil, suggesting that it was the reason Iran captured the British sailors.[59]

Iraqi statements

On 24 March Brigadier General Hakim Jassim, Iraqi military commander of the country's territorial waters, gave an interview with Associated Press. He reportedly doubted the British claims, saying: "We were informed by Iraqi fishermen after they had returned from sea that there were British gunboats in an area that is out of Iraqi control. We don't know why they were there."[46]

On 25 March, the Iraqi foreign minister, Hoshiyar Zebari, urged Iran to release the detained personnel, in a telephone call to his Iranian counterpart. In a statement released, he said that "according to the information available to the Iraqi authorities those soldiers were detained inside Iraqi waters. They were working with the multi-national forces with the approval of the Iraqi government and according to U.N. Security Council resolutions."[60][61]

International reactions

Multinational organisations

 European Union — has expressed its full support of the United Kingdom. Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, whose country currently holds the presidency of the European Union, made a statement saying: "I would also like to use this opportunity of being in this house to tell you that the EU finds it fully unacceptable that 15 British troops have been captured and detained by Iran," she told the European Parliament in a speech.

 United Nations — The UN Security Council made a statement expressing its members' (the term "members of the Security Council" rather than "the Security Council" is used) "grave concern" at Iran's actions, urges Tehran to allow the UK consular access to its personnel, and encourages an early resolution including the release of all 15 crewmembers. Attempts by the British to obtain a stronger statement were defeated by opposition on the Council, led by Russia.[1]

Asia

 Japan — Foreign Minister Taro Aso has made repeated calls to Iranian officials to free the detained Royal Navy soldiers after he had personally spoken to Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki about releasing them unconditionally.[62]

Europe

 Norway — has expressed their full support of the demands made by the European Union for the immediate release of the 15 Royal Navy soldiers, but also hope that the situation would not escalate. On March 30, the State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Raymond Johansen said in a statement to NRK that: "It is very important that the conflict between Iran and the European nations does not escalate. We have to find a immediate solution to this problem."[63]

 Sweden — Foreign Minister Carl Bildt said in a statement that: "It is quite obvious that the Iranians are conducting a kidnapping (of the British crew), and that cannot be accepted."[64]

North America

 Canada — has called for the immediate release of the British personnel and has also given support for the UK's version of events and location of the abduction. Minister of Foreign Affairs Peter MacKay went on to say "This is an unacceptable incident. Iran has no authority to conduct military operations within Iraqi territorial waters. It should also be noted that British forces are operating in Iraq under UN authority and at the invitation of the Government of Iraq." and "The British personnel were engaged in legitimate and routine boarding operations of merchant shipping in Iraqi territorial waters in support of the Government of Iraq. Canadian naval ships have conducted the same type of operations in this area under the same mandate."[65]

 United States — The White House said that U.S. President George W. Bush has pledged his support to the British government over the crisis and has agreed to help them in any way that he can.[66] Furthermore, on 1 April President Bush at a press conference at Camp David said that "The British hostages issue is a serious issue because the Iranians took these people out of Iraqi water".[67]

The U.S. Senate passed a resolution condemning Iran's conduct "in the strongest possible terms" and calling for the "immediate, safe and unconditional release" of the sailors; the House of Representatives did not.[68] The Foreign Affairs Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives issued a statement demanding the release of the Marines, stating that "The government of Iran has once again ignored international law by seizing sailors in waters outside their jurisdiction"[69]

The US Navy had dispatched two Nimitz class aircraft carriers (USS John C. Stennis and USS Dwight D. Eisenhower) carrying more than 100 aircraft (F/A-18 fighter jets) along with 15 other warships to the Persian Gulf. The US Navy maintains that the battle group was dispatched to the Persian Gulf before Iran detained the British sailors, and that there has not been a show of force in response to Iran's actions.[70][71]

Oceania

 Australia — has called for the immediate release of the British sailors. Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer made a statement saying Australia was seriously concerned for the British and urged Iran to release them immediately.[72]

Other

The UK-based pan-Arabic Asharq Alawsat newspaper quoted an unnamed source whom they identified as "a source close to the command of Qods Force" that said the detention of coalition military personnel had been planned as early as 18 March. The newspaper stated that the Iranians would release the personnel if the United States Armed Forces release the five liaison office employees they had detained earlier this year in Iraq, and that this operation had been planned in advance as a tactic to bargain for the release of the detainees.[73]

On 25 March, The Sunday Times quoted a website which it said was run by supporters of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad that the sailors and marines could be indicted for espionage in an Iranian court. Espionage is punishable by death in Iran. The Sunday Times confirmed Asharq Alawsat statement on the detainees, quoting an unidentified person that the situation is resolved through prisoner swap.[74]

Diplomatic actions

The Iranian ambassador to the UK was summoned to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 23 March to see Peter Ricketts, the Permanent Under-Secretary at the Foreign Office, was asked to explain the incident and told that Britain required the servicemen to be returned. He was summoned again on 24 March to see Lord Triesman, a junior foreign office minister, to reiterate Britain's demand that the personnel be released with their equipment.

On 25 March the British ambassador to Iran went to the Iranian foreign ministry. The Iranians said that he had been summoned so they could protest against "the illegal entry of British sailors into Iranian territorial waters". However the British said the meeting was at their request and that they had asked both for the immediate release of the personnel and for consular access to them.[75][76] Prime Minister Tony Blair said if diplomacy fails he will take other measures to release the British sailors and marines. When asked what other measures he refused to answer directly if war was a possibility.

Iran's foreign minister has stated that Britain must admit to its "mistake" before the issue can be solved.[77]

On 28 March, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki stated that British servicewoman Faye Turney would be released by 29 March, at the latest. He maintains that the British personnel were illegally operating in Iranian waters, but stated the possibility that their presence may have been an honest mistake.[78]

On 29 March the head of Iran's supreme national security council, Ali Larijani, announced a suspension of the release of Faye Turney, stating that the announcement of the release had been met with an "incorrect attitude". Meanwhile, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon has been meeting with Iranian officials during a summit in Riyadh.[79] A letter was also published by Iran, allegedly by Faye Turney in which she called for UK troops to be withdrawn from Iraq.[80]

Release

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad unexpectedly announced the release of the captive service men and woman at the end of a long press conference on the afternoon of 4 April 2007[81]. However the release was presented in such a way as to suggest that it was an Easter "gift" to the British people and not a surrender to British Government pressure and diplomacy; to this end the captives were not released to British consular officials but placed directly aboard flight BA6634, a direct flight to the UK, on the morning of 5 April 2007,[82] landing at about 12 noon local time.[83]

2004 incident

Main article: 2004 Iranian seizure of Royal Navy personnel

On 21 June 2004,[84] eight British servicemen were detained for three days, after Iran said they had entered Iranian territorial waters. They were released unharmed, but their equipment was not returned. During their detention, according to former detainee Marine Scott Fallon, they endured a mock execution[85][86] and appeared blindfolded on Iranian TV, where according to such sources as Agence France-Presse and BBC News they were forced to apologise for their "mistake".[1][87][88]

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See also

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