Iranian media have reported the two US Navy boats detained in the Persian Gulf had illegally traveled more than a mile into Iran’s territorial waters.
According to Fars news agency: The GPS equipment confiscated by Islamic Revolutionary Guards Navy forces would “prove that the American ships were ‘snooping’ around in Iranian waters.”
The two boats each had several 50. cal guns and were “snooping around” in Iranian waters, Fars News Agency says
— Thomas Erdbrink (@ThomasErdbrink) January 12, 2016
It was reported earlier that two small U.S. Navy boats with a crew of 10 were detained by Iran having suffered possible mechanical issues when they drifted into Iranian territorial waters in the Persian Gulf.
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Sputnik news reports:
Ten American service members were arrested in the encounter, the New York Times reported, citing Tabnak, a semiofficial Iranian website.
The Pentagon reported earlier Tuesday that it briefly lost contact with two small US Navy boats operating in the Persian Gulf. The vessels were picked up by Iran, which has assured Washington that both ships and all crew members would be returned to the US “promptly.”
Military officials told NBC News that up to ten US sailors were on a training mission around noon ET when one of the vessels — small riverines — began experiencing mechanical difficulties and drifted into Iranian waters. The sailors were detained by Iranian forces and were being held on Farsi Island in the Gulf.
The Daily Beast later reported the sailors — reportedly 9 men and one woman — would be held through US President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address in Washington on Tuesday evening, and through Wednesday. The publication cited senior defense officials. Two US officials confirmed to Reuters that it was unlikely the sailors would be released overnight.
Niamh Harris
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