Iran Releases Detained U.S. Sailors, Revolutionary Guard Says Boats wandered into Iranian waters following an equipment malfunction By Aresu Eqbali in Tehran and Asa Fitch in Dubai
http://www.wsj.com/articles/irans-revolutionary-guard-to-question-detained-u-s-sailors-1452672825
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps on Wednesday said it had released 10 U.S. sailors detained after their boats wandered into Iranian waters following an equipment malfunction.
“After technical examinations, interaction with our political and national security officials and clarification that their entrance into [our] waters was unintentional… it was decided that they should be released,” an IRGC statement said.
The U.S. didn’t immediately confirm the sailors’ release.
The sailors were set free in international waters under the supervision of IRGC vessels, the Iranian statement added.
Two 20-to-25-foot-long Navy boats were taken into custody late Tuesday in Iranian waters near Farsi Island in the Persian Gulf. U.S. officials said they were investigating the possibility that a mechanical issue led them to drift into Iranian territory during a trip from Kuwait to Bahrain.
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