Seized Britons face prosecution after Tehran claims 'confession'
The tensions are climbing ever higher in this game of "tit for tat" that is being played out between the US, UK and Iran.
The Iranians are refusing to bow to international pressure to release 15 captured sailors and, instead, say they intend to prosecute the men.
Iran defiantly rebuffed international demands yesterday for the release of 15 seized British naval personnel, claiming that the sailors and Royal Marines had confessed to entering its waters in an illegal act of aggression, and were now to be prosecuted in the Iranian capital.As I pointed out yesterday, the British were being very coy when defending the fact that these sailors were in Iraqi waters, choosing to rely on the fact that international boundaries in this part of the world are somewhat murky, rather than stating that they were definitely in Iraqi territory:
Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Mohammad Ali Hosseini, claimed in a statement that the Britons were engaged 'in illegal and suspicious' activities, suggesting that Iran might claim they were spying.
Now the Iranians are claiming that, not only were the men in Iranian territory, but that their own equipment shows that they knew that they were in Iranian territory."There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that they were in Iraqi territorial waters. Equally, the Iranians may well claim that they were in Iranian territorial waters," he said.
"The extent and definition of territorial waters in this part of the world is very complicated.
A senior Iranian official told the Fars news agency that the 14 British men and one woman had been taken to Tehran for further investigation. He added that 'documents and evidence existed' - including from the sailors' own GPS equipment - that demonstrated that they knew they had strayed into Iranian waters.Now, I have no clue which side is telling the truth here, but this does demonstrate just how dangerous George Bush's sabre rattling has become. It has already been widely reported that US Special Forces are operating inside Iran with a view to choosing targets for a US/Israeli missile attack on Iranian nuclear sites, therefore one would expect that US and UK forces would be highly aware of the danger of being caught entering Iranian waters and take appropriate steps to avoid ever being caught in any territory that could be - or was disputed to be - Iranian.
Viewed in this light, the British defence claims do seem almost half-hearted. And much as one sympathises with the demands that Iran should immediately release these men, it is also clear that the Iranians had a similar claim when the US arrested five of their diplomats, a claim that the US steadfastly ignored.
As long as the US continue to hold on to the five Iranian diplomats it is hard to see the Iranians easily handing over the fifteen sailors. It is through "tit for tat" games like these that nations edge towards war.
A war that the William Kristol's and George Bush's of this world secretly, and not so secretly, desire.
A part of me thinks that the Iranians have been insane to take the bait here, although that is tempered by a lack of knowledge as to what the fifteen sailors were actually doing.
It says something though, about the myriad of lies that have preceded and continued throughout the Iraq war, that the British Army issues statements, and - without some form of verification - one finds oneself unwilling to take them at their word.
Both Bush and Blair are proven liars. They have also shown an ability to mangle reality to suit their own preconceived view of this war and it's progress. Only a fool would take them at their word at a time when both are ratcheting up tensions towards Iran and at a time when US forces are already reported to be operating inside Iranian territory.
Against that backdrop, it is simply impossible to know who is telling the truth. And that's about as sad an indictment of our current political process as I can imagine.
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