9.5 |
June 2006 to 27 June 2007
Mr Browne
made a statement to the House of Commons on 16 April describing the
events
that
followed:
“The
Iranians detained our personnel illegally, taking them first to an
Iranian
Revolutionary
Guard naval base, and from there to Tehran. We made it
clear,
both
directly to the Iranians and in public statements, that their
detention was
unacceptable
and that they should be released immediately. We made
intense
diplomatic
efforts to establish direct lines of communication with Iranian
leaders,
to prevent
the situation from escalating and to resolve it
quickly.”371
The
personnel from HMS Cornwall were held until 4 April, when their
release was
unexpectedly
announced by President Ahmadinejad during a press
conference.372
Whilst
in
captivity, footage of some of the crew confessing that they had
trespassed in Iranian
waters had
been broadcast.373
Lt Gen Lamb
reported on 25 March that the incident:
“… has had
an unhelpful impact on business, which will take some days to
work
through.
Both the Ambassador [Mr Asquith] and I are working with Iraqi
colleagues
to secure
a result and get our boys back, but unfortunately, this heaps more
pressure
on Maliki
right when he doesn’t need it.”374
After the
personnel were released, considerable controversy was generated by
the
decision to
allow individuals to sell their accounts to the media.
Mr Browne told the House
of Commons
that he had “made a mistake” in agreeing the advice from the Royal
Navy
that this
should be allowed to happen.375
On 8 April
Lt Gen Lamb wrote in his weekly report:
“… the mood
music here is that the US is delighted at the safe return of the
crew,
but
somewhat mystified at their conduct both at the point of capture
but more so on
their
behaviour subsequently in detention which they found very
un‑British … The
Iraqis are
similarly nonplussed that we appear to have co‑operated with the
Iranians’
media
drive. I am unsighted to the detail but the breaking news that
those detained
by the
Iranians have been given permission to sell their stories leaves an
old and
increasingly
worn General like myself questioning what has become of a
military
whose
heritage to this date has been revered by virtually every other
nation as the
benchmark
of fortitude, service and sacrifice.”376
Lieutenant
General Sir Robert Fulton was appointed by ACM Stirrup to lead an
inquiry
into the
operational aspects of the incident, and an MOD review of media
handling led by
Mr Tony
Hall, a former head of BBC News, was also launched.
371
House of
Commons, Official
Report, 16 April
2007, column 24.
372
BBC
News, 4 April
2007, Iran drama
played out on world stage.
373
BBC
News, 4 April
2007, Images
‘part of propaganda war’.
374
Minute Lamb
to CDS, 25 March 2007, ‘SBMR‑I Weekly Report (249) 25 Mar
07’.
375
House of
Commons, Official
Report, 16 April
2007, column 25.
376
Minute Lamb
to CDS, 8 April 2007, ‘SBMR‑I Weekly Report (250) 8 Apr
07’.
131