Iran Confiscates Three British Warships

[spinbaby]

TEHRAN, Iran - Iran confiscated three British warships Monday and arrested eight armed crew members, state-run television reported.

The three British ships — described only as "warships" — entered Iranian territorial waters not far from the Iran-Iraq (news - web sites) border, the Arabic language Al-Alam television reported. The station is part of the state-run Iranian radio and television network.

"Iranian forces confiscated the ships and eight military personnel on board," the report said.

In London, the Ministry of Defense said it was investigating the report but did not know if it was true.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040621/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iran_british_ships&cid=540&ncid=716

[orthogonal]

1. Not comets!

So that's why our entire navy put to sea. Forget about the comets, it's Islamic War Three.

[NNN0LHI]

4. I'd rather have the comets n/t

[Longhorn]

2. Three "warships" with eight crew?

What are they -- rowboats? Canoes? Inflatable boats?

[orthogonal]

7. They all live in

What are they -- rowboats? Canoes? Inflatable boats?

Rumor has it all eight live in a Yellow Submarine.

A Yellow Submarine. A Yellow Submarine.

[Art_from_Ark]

16. Yes, and they were going to liberate Pepperland

from the Big Blue Meanie

[Spentastic]

3. Wow

8 crew members. I knew our carriers were a bit shit but three ships 8 crew? We must have sent the whole fleet.

[Mika]

5. 3 "warships" with a total of 8 crew?

What? Were they Zodiak inflatable rubber boats?

[Redhead488]

8. Hey, to the Iranians

those ARE warships!

[chenGOD]

46. No it was actually the Canadian navy...

;)




And I am a Candian born and raised, just before any of our esteemed Canuck DU members get pissed..

[underpants]

6. So THAT's what happened to the Brits in the Mexican cave

Remember that?

Sounds like an act of war (on both sides) to me. Great just freakin' great.

[Redhead488]

9. Why is it an act of war by Iran?

They are entitled to confiscate the "warships" and arrest the Brits if they were in their (the Iranians) territorial waters. That's perfectly permissible and is not an act of war.

[VolcanoJen]

11. So, will Iran see this as an "Act of War" by Britain?

The cable outlets haven't seemed to pick up on this yet... so maybe it's nothing... which is what I'm hoping.

[Redhead488]

13. If this is true,

perhaps they might. We'll have to wait and see how this plays out.

[underpants]

17. You are right it is an act of war by Britain

I believe.

[Redhead488]

19. Depends

on if the "warships" were "lost" or not (not likely, IMHO) or if they were really in Iranian waters. There may be a dispute as to where the Brits actually were. I guess we have to wait and see what actually transpired before we can label it an act of war by either side.

[LibLabUK]

22. Don't forget...

Some countries have dubious claims to what are territorial and international water...

[LibLabUK]

21. And....

What exactly is Iran going to do?

[Redhead488]

24. Whine

...Bitch...Moan. Try to make a big issue out of it. Doubt it will get any traction, though.

[nolabels]

47. We can't invade Mexico, they already implemented the merger

http://www.kucinich.us/issues/trade.php

NEW - Dennis Talks About Jobs and NAFTA

If the United States is to be free to negotiate fair trade agreements that protect jobs, the rights of workers, and the environment, then there is no alternative but to repeal NAFTA and withdraw from the WTO. Throughout this presidential race, I have remained the only candidate sworn to repeal NAFTA and the WTO, and I will unalterably continue to work toward these goals.

For a decade, we have been subjected to a grand experiment called NAFTA. When that agreement was signed in 1993, it was enthusiastically supported by big business, Republicans, and all too many Democrats -- including then-Governor Howard Dean, who even attended a NAFTA signing ceremony. Now it is clear that this experiment has failed. We've lost over 3 million manufacturing jobs since July 2000. Over a half million of these are directly attributable to NAFTA. Our trade deficit grew to $418 billion last year and continues to climb. And, because of the WTO, corporations have been granted unprecedented powers to sue the government in closed trade courts anytime laws designed to protect workers or the environment are deemed to infringe on corporate "rights."
(snip)

[dArKeR]

48. Incompetence or trying to start World War III, that's the Bush/Blair

legacy!

[VolcanoJen]

10. At any rate... isn't this an act of war?

Jesus Christ!! Isn't enough shit going down right now without me having to worry about this?

:-(

[Redhead488]

12. Depends

It's not necessarily an act of war.

[psychopomp]

23. Not an act of war

...now, it is an "international incident."

[Media_Lies_Daily]

14. Translation: British special forces on board small boats.

[LibLabUK]

20. Unlikely...

There would be more than 8 "sailors" on board if they were special forces.

It would be more of a coup for the Iranians to capture 8 SAS/SBS soldiers... they'd be showing off their captives and shouting to anyone who would listen.

And besides...The Royal Navy is confirming that they've lost contact with 3 small patrol boats.. according to the BBC.

[Jacobin]

53. They were in a river

probably Zodiacs with outboard motors.

[Voice_of_Europe]

15. WRONG TRANSLATION

Replace WARSHIP with MILITARY VESSEL...

It's probably some British Boat on coast guard duty which has ventured one too many times into Iranian border waters...

Today with GPS you can hardly say they went into Iranian waters by accident...

Sounds perfectly legal to me.

[Just Me]

18. Yikes!!! NOT good!! *eom*

[NashVegas]

25. Gee, Looks Like We're Going to Iran

don't it?

[LibLabUK]

26. Err no..

This'll be resolved diplomatically.

[NashVegas]

28. Not If * Has His Way

..

[LibLabUK]

32. Well...

I'm sure HE'd like to... but he can't very well invade on the UK's behalf.

Diplomatic relations between the UK and Iran have been thawing over the past couple of years, and I'm certain that this will be resolved by the diplomats rather than the military.

That being said, I wouldn't completely rule out a rescue... but I don't think it'll be a prelude to invasion.

[BootinUp]

31. True

If they were patrol boats, I'm surprised they couldn't outrun whatever the Iranians sent after them. Maybe one was disabled and the others were assisting.

[muriel_volestrangler]

27. BBC says the patrol boats were on the Shatt-al-Arab river

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/3826179.stm

The Iranian military spokesman said the boats were being escorted to shore, where an investigation would be conducted.

He indicated they could be freed soon if the inquiry showed there had been no malicious intent.

He said the Revolutionary Guards were now waiting for the Iranian foreign ministry to take up the case.

Iranian naval sources quoted by Iran's official Arab-language al-Alam satellite TV news station said weapons and maps were found on board the vessels.

[LibLabUK]

29. Hmm

Looks like they took a wrong turning... oops

[nolabels]

54. Maybe they had the wrong map?

Perhaps they thought they were on the.........

Welcome aboard!



One of the best value days out in London

Westminster Passenger Service Association are the only riverboat company operating a scheduled service from Westminster to Kew, Richmond and Hampton Court. Daily sailings from Westminster Pier are operated between April and October.

The pier can be found next to Westminster Bridge, opposite the The Palace of Westminster (Houses of Parliament), the nearest Underground station is Westminster (Jubilee, Circle and District lines).

From the heart of London, following the Royal Barge Route of King Henry VIII and other British monarchs, passing the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew, and historical Richmond, you will transit the locks as the river winds and twists to the Royal Palace of Hampton Court, which has stood on the banks of the river for more than 500 years.
(snip)
http://www.wpsa.co.uk/

[R Hickey]

55. I've been on that boat ride, went to Hampton Court

Saw Kew Gardens, too.

[nolabels]

58. I have only been on boat rides in amusement parks :-(

Welcome!!!

We're Dalli and Sammy from Houston, Texas. This is our vacation in Paris. I'm Dalli, the one with the dots, the Siamese is my kid sister Sammy. We spent about ten days in and around Paris. The photos were taken by David Scarbrough. (he lives with us in Houston.) Check out his portfolio Web Site. Click on the small pictures to see a bigger image and a full caption. We hope you enjoy the photos! Read our feedback page and lets us know what you think! At the bottom of this page are links to our favorite Paris Web Sites.
(snip)
http://www.catsinparis.com/Default.htm

[Redhead488]

30. What a surprise!

Weapons and maps onboard military patrol craft...what will those crafty Brits think up next?

[LibLabUK]

33. Ahh..

THey didn't find our supersecret stashes of Marmite...some would argue that that is a biological weapon.

[MaineDem]

35. I still can't believe people actually EAT that stuff

:evilgrin:

My Kiwi pal, who loves it, doesn't understand why I can't eat it. Ewwww.

[LibLabUK]

37. It's nice!

On toast with butter..

The best thing about it though is that a jar lasts ages... I only ever seem to buy one per year.

[muriel_volestrangler]

41. It's food made from beer

What's not to love???

[JoFerret]

44. That's it...they were after the Marmite

.

[orthogonal]

36. But now they're just up Shatt Creek.

BBC says the patrol boats were on the Shatt-al-Arab river

But as of now I hear those British mariners are just up Shatt Creek.

[Jacobin]

43. Here's a map of the river

http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/MapCenter/MapImg.aspx?lat=30.4948683776049&long=48.0626821677474&alt=7&mapsize=Small&mapstyle=Comprehensive&mapstyleselectedindex=0&selectedent=42509

(map is interactive and I couldn't figure out how to copy it, but here's a link to the map)

On edit: Okay here's a better map. Near those juicy oil fields in the south...mmmmmmmmmm..



Looks like some patrol boats got on the wrong side of the river between Iran and Iraq.

[UpInArms]

45. NYT's confirming article: 3 Royal Navy Vessels, With Crew of 8, Are Seized

3 Royal Navy Vessels, With Crew of 8, Are Seized by Iran

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/21/international/middleeast/21CND-IRAN.html

TEHRAN, Iran, June 21 — The Iranian Navy seized three small British vessels and detained eight crew members this morning, the spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry said.

The boats and their crew were seized after they were found in the Iranian waters of the Shatt-al-Arab River, which borders Iran and Iraq, said the spokesman, Hamid Reza Assefi.

In London the British Defense Ministry said it could confirm "we did lose contact with a patrol earlier this morning and it does involve three small vessels and eight personnel," Reuters reported. This was confirmed by a British military official in Basra, southern Iraq, who was quoted by The Associated Press as saying it was "not unusual for the Royal Navy to be patrolling the Shatt-al-Arab."

The detained men were being questioned by the Iranian Navy and admitted they had entered Iranian territory, Mr. Assefi said. He refused to give any further details.

Relations between Iran and Britain have been strained in the past few weeks. Britain, together with Germany and France, drafted a resolution with the United Nations nuclear agency denouncing what the countries called Iran's lack of cooperation over its nuclear activities.

...a bit more...

[Fridays Child]

34. See? That's just what Saddam always did. No wonder we had to invade Iraq!

/sarcasm

[LibLabUK]

38. I really feel sorry for those 8 sailors....

They're gonna miss the match tonight..

[Redhead488]

39. Good Luck

You need at least a draw correct?

[LibLabUK]

40. Thanks...

Yeah, a draw will get us through to the quarter-finals.

[Redhead488]

42. Was stationed in the UK for 6 years

You're my favorite side, besides the US of course. Got to be a big Liverpool fan back in the days of Ian Rush and Kenny Dagleish (sp?)

[hunter]

56. Maybe not...

Perhaps their captors will be watching it.

[daleo]

49. Accidentally off course or a little brinkmanship?

This seems a bit like a Canadian ship being found by the U.S. side of the St. Lawrence river or a Mexican ship being on the wrong side of the Rio Grande (I think the latter is pretty shallow, so this may not really be possible). It could be interpreted as a mistake, or a bit of probing. Obviously, given the U.K.'s status as a country occupying its neighbor, the Iranians are going to be inclined to the latter interpretation.

[struggle4progress]

50. Iran seizes three Royal Navy vessels

Iran has seized three Royal Navy boats, which it said entered its waters near the Iraqi border, and arrested eight British crew.
<snip>
Britain confirmed it had "lost contact" with three vessels and eight sailors in the strip of water.
<snip>
It said Britain had small naval ships there helping to train Iraqi police.
"We are not talking about ships, we are not talking about warships, we are talking about small river patrol vessels," the spokesman said.
http://www.reuters.co.uk/newsPackageArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=533187§ion=news

[will work 4 food]

51. Pic of vessle captured.

[LibLabUK]

52. Okay..

How'd they fit 8 soldier/sailors into 3 of them??

Hehehe..

[Aidoneus]

57. that's a Canadian navy boat

I don't see the relevance..