thedrifter
04-07-07, 08:04 AM
Britain's navy chief defends crew's conduct, suspends boarding operations in Persian Gulf
By: PAISLEY DODDS - Associated Press
LONDON -- Britain's top naval officer on Friday defended the conduct of 15 sailors and marines seized by Iranian forces after inspecting a merchant vessel in the Persian Gulf and said such operations would be suspended while a review is conducted.
Defense officials say none of the crew will be punished.
"For the moment, we have stopped (British) boarding operations. Coalition operations continue under U.K. command," said Adm. Jonathon Band, head of the Royal Navy. "Currently, our (operations) have been suspended while we do that review."
He told the British Broadcasting Corp. he believed the crew behaved with "considerable dignity and a lot of courage" during their 13 days in Iranian captivity.
He also said the so-called confessions made by some of them and broadcast on Iranian state television appeared to have been made under "a certain amount of psychological pressure."
"I would not agree at all that it was not our finest hour. I think our people have reacted extremely well in some very difficult circumstances," he said.
Although no penalty is planned, officials will examine the circumstances in which some of the 15 appeared in videos offering regrets for entering Iran's territorial waters, while Britain's government has insisted they were in Iraqi waters.
"Was the intelligence correct?" Band asked. "We will look at the equipment, we will look at the procedures, we will look at all the things that happened."
"We certainly wouldn't want this to happen again."
Band also said the rules of engagement would be examined. Some commentators have criticized the crew for not fighting back when armed Iranian forces captured them.
"In the context of the operation that morning, with the force that was shown against them, they made exactly the right decision. I stand by what they did," Band said.
The video of four of the crew's apologies and letters written by the lone female sailor, Faye Turney, were met with disgust in Britain, where many were angry at Iran but some also harshly criticized the prisoners for caving in.
Most British military personnel are given training on being captured, but only special operations troops and pilots receive specialized training on what to do if taken hostage, the ministry said.
Although experts said the broadcast admissions were almost certainly made under duress, many British newspapers lashed out at the crew and the military.
"First, there is the apparent incompetence of the Royal Navy in providing insufficient protection to lightly armed inflatables," the Daily Telegraph said in an editorial.
"Second, the seized personnel lost no time in admitting to having trespassed and in apologizing for their mistake. The old military practice of giving name, rank and number, and no more, has obviously been abandoned," it said.
Some critics said U.S. troops would have behaved differently.
The Code of the U.S. Fighting Force, which guides troops if they are taken captive, says soldiers must resist participating in propaganda broadcasts or furnishing self-criticism of any kind.
The British personnel were in two inflatable boats when captured March 23 while patrolling for smugglers near the mouth of the Shatt al-Arab, a waterway long a disputed dividing line between Iraq and Iran. They had just inspected an Indian cargo ship, one of 66 boardings they had performed during their mission in March, British officials said.
Iran said the crew entered Iranian waters. Britain insisted they were in Iraqi waters working under a U.N. mandate. A similar incident took place in 2004 when Iran seized a British crew for three days.
After the freed naval team returned home Thursday, Britain's Sky News raised questions about its activities. It said an officer in the captured crew, Royal Marine Capt. Chris Air, had said in an interview three weeks ago that the team was gathering intelligence on Iran during its patrols.
The Defense Ministry denied the boat patrol was an intelligence mission, saying the team spoke to ship captains in the Persian Gulf and Shatt Al-Arab to determine who is using shipping routes.
Band, too, denied intelligence-gathering.
"We are certainly not spying on them," he said. "The Iranians in that part of Iraqi territorial waters are not part of the scene."
Ellie
By: PAISLEY DODDS - Associated Press
LONDON -- Britain's top naval officer on Friday defended the conduct of 15 sailors and marines seized by Iranian forces after inspecting a merchant vessel in the Persian Gulf and said such operations would be suspended while a review is conducted.
Defense officials say none of the crew will be punished.
"For the moment, we have stopped (British) boarding operations. Coalition operations continue under U.K. command," said Adm. Jonathon Band, head of the Royal Navy. "Currently, our (operations) have been suspended while we do that review."
He told the British Broadcasting Corp. he believed the crew behaved with "considerable dignity and a lot of courage" during their 13 days in Iranian captivity.
He also said the so-called confessions made by some of them and broadcast on Iranian state television appeared to have been made under "a certain amount of psychological pressure."
"I would not agree at all that it was not our finest hour. I think our people have reacted extremely well in some very difficult circumstances," he said.
Although no penalty is planned, officials will examine the circumstances in which some of the 15 appeared in videos offering regrets for entering Iran's territorial waters, while Britain's government has insisted they were in Iraqi waters.
"Was the intelligence correct?" Band asked. "We will look at the equipment, we will look at the procedures, we will look at all the things that happened."
"We certainly wouldn't want this to happen again."
Band also said the rules of engagement would be examined. Some commentators have criticized the crew for not fighting back when armed Iranian forces captured them.
"In the context of the operation that morning, with the force that was shown against them, they made exactly the right decision. I stand by what they did," Band said.
The video of four of the crew's apologies and letters written by the lone female sailor, Faye Turney, were met with disgust in Britain, where many were angry at Iran but some also harshly criticized the prisoners for caving in.
Most British military personnel are given training on being captured, but only special operations troops and pilots receive specialized training on what to do if taken hostage, the ministry said.
Although experts said the broadcast admissions were almost certainly made under duress, many British newspapers lashed out at the crew and the military.
"First, there is the apparent incompetence of the Royal Navy in providing insufficient protection to lightly armed inflatables," the Daily Telegraph said in an editorial.
"Second, the seized personnel lost no time in admitting to having trespassed and in apologizing for their mistake. The old military practice of giving name, rank and number, and no more, has obviously been abandoned," it said.
Some critics said U.S. troops would have behaved differently.
The Code of the U.S. Fighting Force, which guides troops if they are taken captive, says soldiers must resist participating in propaganda broadcasts or furnishing self-criticism of any kind.
The British personnel were in two inflatable boats when captured March 23 while patrolling for smugglers near the mouth of the Shatt al-Arab, a waterway long a disputed dividing line between Iraq and Iran. They had just inspected an Indian cargo ship, one of 66 boardings they had performed during their mission in March, British officials said.
Iran said the crew entered Iranian waters. Britain insisted they were in Iraqi waters working under a U.N. mandate. A similar incident took place in 2004 when Iran seized a British crew for three days.
After the freed naval team returned home Thursday, Britain's Sky News raised questions about its activities. It said an officer in the captured crew, Royal Marine Capt. Chris Air, had said in an interview three weeks ago that the team was gathering intelligence on Iran during its patrols.
The Defense Ministry denied the boat patrol was an intelligence mission, saying the team spoke to ship captains in the Persian Gulf and Shatt Al-Arab to determine who is using shipping routes.
Band, too, denied intelligence-gathering.
"We are certainly not spying on them," he said. "The Iranians in that part of Iraqi territorial waters are not part of the scene."
Ellie