The 2004 Iranian seizure of Royal Navy personnel took place in the

Shatt al-Arab The Shatt al-Arab ( ar, شط العرب, lit=River of the Arabs; fa, اروندرود, Arvand Rud, lit=Swift River) is a river of some in length that is formed at the confluence of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in the town of al-Qurnah in ...

(Arvand Rud in Persian) waterway on 21 June. Six

Royal Marines The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious light infantry and also one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy. The Corps of Royal Marine ...

and two Royal Navy sailors were captured. The British servicemen were seized while training Iraqi river patrol personnel after Iran said they had strayed to the Iranian side of the waterway. They were threatened with legal action initially but released three days later following diplomatic discussions between Jack Straw, then British

Foreign Secretary The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Seen as ...

, and

Kamal Kharazi Sayyid Kamal Kharazi ( fa, کمال خرازی, born 1 December 1944) is an Iranian reformist politician and diplomat who was the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 20 August 1997 to 24 August 2005 as appointed by President Mohammad Khatami servi ...

, then

Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs The Ministry of Foreign Affairs ( fa, وزارت امور خارجه, Vezārat-e Omūr-e Khārejeh) is an Iranian government ministry headed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who is a member of cabinet. The current Minister of Foreign Affair ...

. The weapons and boats of the British personnel were confiscated and have not been returned. They were released unharmed three days later, on 24 June, after the British and Iranian governments agreed there had been a misunderstanding. Their equipment was not returned and a rigid inflatable boat (RIB) was put on display in a museum in Tehran. During their detention, according to former detainee Marine Scott Fallon, they endured a mock execution in which they were marched into the desert and made to stand blindfolded in front of a ditch while their captors cocked their weapons. They also appeared blindfolded on Iranian TV, where they were forced to apologise for their "mistake". The Royal Navy boats were operating close to the northern coast of the Persian Gulf in the mouth of the Shatt al-Arab waterway which divides southern Iran and Iraq. The weather was bad causing negligible visibility which may have contributed to a potential crossing of the Iranian border by the Royal Navy. After the crew were returned and events analysed the British government affirmed its belief that the personnel were actually still in Iraqi waters, however they consigned the incident to a misunderstanding and requested the return of the equipment. In 2015, an FOIA request released a redacted report.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Iranian Seizure Of Royal Navy Personnel, 2004 Seizure of Royal Navy personnel Iranian seizure of Royal Navy personnel International maritime incidents Diplomatic incidents Maritime incidents in 2004 Iranian Seizure of Royal Navy Personnel, 2004 Iran–United Kingdom military relations 21st-century history of the Royal Navy Battles and conflicts without fatalities June 2004 events in Asia

See also

References