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Title: News Jan 12 2016, 5:22 pm ET Pentagon: 2 U.S. Navy Boats With 10 American Sailors Held by Iran Military
Source:
NBC News
URL Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/p ... ats-held-iran-military-n495031
Published: Jan 12, 2016
Author: Jim Miklaszewski and Courtney Kube
Post Date: 2016-01-12 18:11:50 by Stoner
Keywords: None
Views: 9939
Comments: 52
Iranian military forces seized two U.S. Navy boats Tuesday and are detaining them on Iran's Farsi Island in the Persian Gulf, senior U.S. officials told NBC News. The 10 American sailors were on a training mission around noon ET when one of the boats may have experienced mechanical failure and drifted into Iranian-claimed waters, officials said. Iran's coast guard took them into custody. The officials said it's unclear whether the sailors — nine men and one woman — aboard the two small riverine vessels had strayed into Iranian territorial waters before they were captured. NBC Special Report: U.S. Ships Held by Iranian Forces 2:12 "At this point, we're still monitoring the situation and it's not entirely clear what happened," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said on MSNBC, adding that Iranian authorities confirmed that the sailors are safe. Earnest said there remained no exact time frame for when the sailors would be let go, but didn't expect a long delay. Related: Iran Attacks Replica U.S. Warship in Strait of Hormuz Missile Drill Following reports of the incident, Secretary of State John Kerry spoke with Iranian officials in Tehran by phone, attempting to secure the sailors' release. One senior official told NBC News the Iranians understand it was a mistake and have agreed to release the Americans in international waters within hours. The Persian Gulf has been a flash point in the Middle East, and the incident comes on the same day President Barack Obama is set to give his annual State of the Union address. Image: Coastal Riverine Squadron 3 operations Riverine Command Boat (RCB) 802, assigned to Combined Task Group (CTG) 56.7, conducts patrol operations in the Arabian Gulf in Oct. 2015. Two small riverine vessels of this type were detained on Iran's Farsi Island. MC2 Torrey W. Lee / U.S. Navy Senior U.S. military commanders also criticized Iran last month for its "highly provocative" actions when it fired unguided rockets near U.S. ships, including the USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier. Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook told The Associated Press that the boats were moving between Kuwait and Bahrain when U.S. officials lost contact with them. Farsi Island sits in the Persian Gulf in between Iran and Saudi Arabia, and is fortified by Iranian Revolutionary Guards. Related: U.S. Carrier Harry S. Truman Has Close Call With Iranian Rockets "We have been in contact with Iran and have received assurances that the crew and the vessels will be returned promptly," Cook said. Retired Army Gen. Barry McCaffrey, an NBC News military analyst, said the seizure of American boats is "very bad news" and highlights how the Navy may have failed to have surveillance on its vessels. "We simply can't allow ground, air or naval units to be seized by a foreign hostile power," McCaffrey said on MSNBC. "I hope they're back real quickly. This is an affront to our military presence in the Gulf and will unsettle our allies in the region." Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., said on MSNBC that the pending release of the sailors shows how diplomacy between U.S. and Iranian officials "is working." "Hopefully this will be resolved, and it won't be an issue that we're talking about in a couple of hours," she said. This is NOT good. Remind anyone that Obama = Jimmy Carter II ??
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Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 18.
#2. To: Stoner (#0)
I recalled a similar incident years back. A quick search reveals that it was a Brit crew back in 2007. British sailors and marines have finally returned home from Iran. The British Defence Ministry has announced that some of the crew members were held in Iran in solitary confinement. After landing at London's Heathrow airport on Thursday the British crew was taken by helicopters to a base southwest of the city, where they were debriefed about their 13 days in captivity. More detailed questioning is expected on Friday, but for the sailors politics was secondary as they were reunited with their families, who have been waiting for this moment since their loved ones were detained in Iran on March 23. Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced he decided to forgive and free the 15, even though Britain was not “brave enough” to admit they had strayed into Iranian territory. The dispute centred on where the British sailors and marines were when they were detained. Britain says they were in Iraqi waters on a routine UN mission. Tehran says they strayed into its territorial waters. The waterway, where British and Iranian naval vessels operate daily, remains an area of potential conflict because the border between Iran and Iraq is poorly defined. After his announcement, a smiling Mahmoud Ahmadinejad met several of the sailors and marines, dressed in smart suits, shaking hands with them and exchanging a few words through an interpreter. The servicemen were interviewed later on Wednesday. “I will not say anything different that I have said over here. I will be absolutely completely truthful. I will definitely promote Iran. I think there is a lot of ignorance in the UK really about Iran and the people,” said Lieutenant Felix Carman, one of the sailors. Iranian and British officials had negotiations to find a diplomatic solution to a standoff that had added to international tension over Iran's disputed nuclear programme, the subject of the UN Security Council sanctions. Analysts say that while Mr Ahmadinejad may hope for praise in the West, Britain and the U.S. were likely to maintain diplomatic pressure, separating the sailors' freedom from issues like Iran's nuclear programme. The Brits got held for a few weeks. Our crews will get returned by morning, it seems. I guess Iran doesn't want any static on that sweet $150 billion check Obola wants to send them.
I was in Iraq when the Brits were caught. The area is very confined and one small navigation error and you are in Iranian waters. The Brits were training Iraqi small navy boats at the time. We might have been doing the same. From what the Squids told me in Iraq the area has a lot of hazardous shoals and that is why smaller boats are ideal for patrolling.
From what the Squids told me in Iraq the area has a lot of hazardous shoals and that is why smaller boats are ideal for patrolling. It appears one boat broke down and the other stopped to assist. While stopped, they drifted across the line and were apprehended by Iran, all concerned to help the "strays". This is fairly minor. Iran and America have been doing a few little favors for each other in curbing pirate attacks and such elsewhere. It has been a less unfriendly naval stance between us for some years now. You almost have to wonder if this is just the ayatollah shaking the Obama piggy bank, impatient for his $50B or $100B or $150B payout, whatever it really amounts to.
Really? Have you seen the pictures this morning of our sailors on their knees with their hand behind their head? I wouldn't call that less unfriendly.
#19. To: SOSO (#18)
Those just started circulating in the last hour or so. Definitely more humiliating that how they treated the Brit sailors in 2007, even if the Iranians did detain them for 13 days instead of overnight. No proof yet that the Iranians demanded (and got) an official apology. I do notice Kerry offering his thanks to Iran for "helping" our "straying" sailors. Both Lurch and the Iranian foreign minister are happy that things are now so much more peaceful than they were some years back. A truly craven performance by Lurch. Even Hagel wasn't this repulsive.
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Apparently, small British and American boats keep "straying" into Iranian territorial waters. British navy crew arrives home from Iran
#13. To: TooConservative (#2)
Apparently, small British and American boats keep "straying" into Iranian territorial waters.
#17. To: redleghunter (#13)
I was in Iraq when the Brits were caught. The area is very confined and one small navigation error and you are in Iranian waters. The Brits were training Iraqi small navy boats at the time. We might have been doing the same.
#18. To: TooConservative, redleghunter, All (#17)
This is fairly minor. Iran and America have been doing a few little favors for each other in curbing pirate attacks and such elsewhere. It has been a less unfriendly naval stance between us for some years now.
Replies to Comment # 18. Have you seen the pictures this morning of our sailors on their knees with their hand behind their head?
End Trace Mode for Comment # 18.
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