View Full Version : Iran seizes two US Navy boats
Unknown what type of boats or where the seizure took place.
Details are sketchy, but initial reports state that 10 US service personal were aboard the boats.
Iran’s IRGC takes US navy boats into custody in the Persian Gulf.
Pentagon says the boats were moving between Kuwait and Bahrain when the US lost contact.
Up to 10 U.S. Navy sailors have been detained by Iranian Revolutionary Guard forces.
http://pzfeed.com/2-navy-boats-in-iranian-custody/
Update ...
Ten sailors and two boats were taken into Iranian custody Tuesday after their patrol boats drifted into Iranian claimed waters, according to two defense officials.
The riverine sailors are believed to have drifted into Iranian territory after having mechanical issues with their boats. The defense officials said Secretary of State John Kerry got immediately involved and Iran has agreed to turn the sailors and vessels over, though they have not been turned over as of 4 p.m., Eastern Standard Time.
"Earlier today, noonish east coast, we lost contact with two small U.S. naval craft en route from Kuwait to Bahrain," said a defense official familiar with the ongoing negotiations. "We subsequently have been in communication with Iranian authorities, who have informed us of the safety and well-being of our personnel. We have received assurances the sailors will promptly be allowed to continue their journey."
Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook told The Associated Press that the boats were moving between Kuwait and Bahrain when the U.S. lost contact with them. The situation began to unfold during the evening in the Persian Gulf, according to a defense official. The Truman Carrier Strike Group launched a search and rescue effort and is still in the vicinity.
Cook says, "We have been in contact with Iran and have received assurances that the crew and the vessels will be returned promptly."
http://www.navytimes.com/story/military/2016/01/12/pentagon-2-us-navy-boats-held-iran-but-returned/78698018/
WarriorDiplomat
01-12-2016, 15:58
This is bad and a sign of how little fear and respect our military commands with this administration.
I'm sure this will be addressed in detail during the SOTU speech.
Old Dog New Trick
01-12-2016, 16:14
I hope there is a YouTube of Kerry on his knees begging please please please!
Hang in there boys, the State Department will make strong demands to get you back in less than 444 days.
Utah Bob
01-12-2016, 16:45
I'd like to think somebody has the stones to do something but I suspect the stand down porder was given immediately.
This will probably end with an apology by the administration and further humiliation for the US. :mad::mad::mad:
I sure wish I was wrong.
I'm sure this will be addressed in detail during the SOTU speech.
You might be correct ...
Iran’s IRGC takes US navy boats into custody in the Persian Gulf.
Pentagon says the boats were moving between Kuwait and Bahrain when the US lost contact.
Up to 10 U.S. Navy sailors have been detained by Iranian Revolutionary Guard forces.
The two boats each had several 50. cal guns and were “snooping around” in Iranian waters, Fars News Agency says.
Iran will hold US sailors through the State of the Union and into tomorrow, the Daily Beast reports.
http://pzfeed.com/2-navy-boats-in-iranian-custody/
Team Sergeant
01-12-2016, 16:48
Unless something very drastic has changed, Rhode Island has a larger navy than Iran.
Liechtenstein has a bigger navy than Iran.
This is why we really pay no attention to Iran, but it sells newspapers.
Strange one.
Considering engine/system redundancies on small boats, self-recovery/towing by partnered boat if NAV/GPS loc is getting iffy, and possibly proximity to IRGC controlled Farsi Island I'll assume the Iranians pinched them on an interdiction patrol in open uncontested water until proven otherwise.
All I know is that if I was Iranian IRGC trying to undermine Bahrain as well as oil producing and chocker full of Shia Eastern Saudi Arabia I'd be trying to use Farsi Island for small boat over(under too?) the water resupply of any IRGC backed underground/auxiliary that exists there.
Especially since diplomatic cargo and conventional air/sea/ground travel and trade between Saudi and Iran has been cut off at the knees.
We live in interesting times.
blacksmoke
01-12-2016, 17:17
Two small boats lost comms with the Pentagon it said on Fox news?? Seems weird, no contingency plans for this while going through Persian Gulf? Maybe an EMP device took out their electronics and a "routine patrol" found these 10 guys in "two small boats" that ran aground.
Two small boats lost comms with the Pentagon it said on Fox news?? Seems weird, no contingency plans for this while going through Persian Gulf? Maybe an EMP device took out their electronics and a "routine patrol" found these 10 guys in "two small boats" that ran aground.
:eek:
I read on moveon.org, that Sean Penn was in the gulf looking to make a SEAL movie and was searching for local drug dealers??
But I could be wrong?? :D
I read on moveon.org, that Sean Penn was in the gulf looking to make a SEAL movie and was searching for local drug dealers??
But I could be wrong?? :D
Or maybe trying to get an interview and selfie with Qassem Soliemani?
Sadly, I'm genuinely not sure whether to put that in pink or not as I wouldn't put it past him.
Golf1echo
01-12-2016, 17:56
I read on moveon.org, that Sean Penn was in the gulf looking to make a SEAL movie and was searching for local drug dealers??
But I could be wrong?? :D
Didn't he already do that......Oh wait, that was his friend Carlos :D :munchin
....Carlos Esteves AKA Charlie Sheen
Old Dog New Trick
01-12-2016, 18:05
Hillary's phone rang at 03:00, she got the recording thirteen hours later.
If anyone, but our resident mooslim was the C&C, this provocation would likely not happen, or the situation could have been seamen in distress.
PedOncoDoc
01-12-2016, 18:52
... seamen in distress.
Isn't that part of what got slick Willy Clinton in hot water? :D
The Reaper
01-12-2016, 19:05
I remember when other countries were afraid to provoke us.
And it was not that long ago.
Maybe Kerry will go back to kiss the Iranians' asses again and beg for the sailors' release. Offer Obama's apologies for intruding in international waters. :rolleyes:
Not much else going to happen.
TR
Isn't that part of what got slick Willy Clinton in hot water? :D
Close, Slick Willie had semen on dedress. :D
Close, Slick Willie had semen on dedress. :D
I feel somehow not worthy after reading that.
Basenshukai
01-12-2016, 20:44
If anyone, but our resident mooslim was the C&C, this provocation would likely not happen, or the situation could have been seamen in distress.
On 1 April 2001, during George W. Bush's Presidency (January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009), we had the Hainan Island Incident where overly aggressive action by a Chinese J-8 interceptor (PRC) resulted in the emergency landing of a US Navy EP-3D Aries II in the island. Twenty-four US service members were detained and interrogated. They were released ten-days of after diplomatic maneuvering.
Maybe they were testing "W". But, these things happen for so many reasons.
blacksmoke
01-12-2016, 21:26
:eek:
I'd like to hear your explanation on how two boats lost radio contact and possibly both suffered mechanical failures that made them drift to an island. :munchin
On 1 April 2001, during George W. Bush's Presidency (January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009), we had the Hainan Island Incident where overly aggressive action by a Chinese J-8 interceptor (PRC) resulted in the emergency landing of a US Navy EP-3D Aries II in the island. Twenty-four US service members were detained and interrogated. They were released ten-days of after diplomatic maneuvering.
(Just a side note on that, my wife built the route and the initial flight plan for the Continental Airlines pick-up of the crew. We knew what was going to happen and, approximately, when a couple of days before it did.)
Pat
BrokenSwitch
01-13-2016, 00:39
Compared to the British sailors who were captured and turned into propaganda in 2007, this sounds tame.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/206369#.VpXwCvl95hE
... not that being a POW for even an hour should be called "tame."
Interesting on the two styles of reporting.
Here's one....
10 sailors detained in Iran returned to US Navy
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Ten U.S. Navy sailors safely returned to U.S. custody Wednesday after departing Iran, a statement from U.S. Naval Forces Central Command in Bahrain said. There are no indications sailors were harmed during their brief detention, the command said.
The sailors departed Farsi Island at 8:43 a.m. (GMT) aboard the two Riverine Command Boats they had been operating when they lost contact with the U.S. Navy. The Sailors were later transferred ashore by U.S. Navy aircraft, while other sailors took charge of the boats and continued transiting toward Bahrain, the boats' original destination, the statement said. The Navy will investigate the incident.
Iran's Revolutionary Guard said the sailors were released Wednesday after it was determined that their entry into Iranian territorial waters was not intentional.
The nine men and one woman were being held at an Iranian base on Farsi Island after being detained nearby on Tuesday.
The 10 sailors were taken into custody after their two boats drifted into Iranian waters, a leading Iranian official said.
"Investigation shows that entry of American sailors into Iran's territorial waters was due to mechanical problems in their navigation system," Gen. Ali Fadavi, Navy chief of Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard, was quoted as saying on Iran's state TV.
U.S. officials had said on Tuesday that Tehran assured them the crew and vessels would be returned safely and promptly.
Earlier Wednesday, Fadavi said the American boats had shown "unprofessional acts" for 40 minutes before being picked up by Iranian forces after entering the country's territorial waters.
The U.S. detainees included nine men and one woman, who were held overnight at an Iranian base on Farsi Island in the Persian Gulf. They were expected to be transferred Wednesday to a U.S. ship in the region.
"U.S. naval force and their frigate showed an unprofessional behavior and had air and naval moves for 40 minutes in the area," Fadavi said at one point. He said Tehran did not consider the U.S. Navy boats violating Iranian territorial waters as "innocent passage."
"Certainly U.S. presence in Persian Gulf and their passage has never been innocent and we do not deem their passage as innocent," he said.
Fadavi said Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif "had a firm stance" during a telephone conversation with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry "on their presence in our territorial waters and said they should not have come and should apologize."
"This process is underway now and will not last long. The Guard naval force will carry out orders of top commanders regarding this case as soon as we receive them," he said.
Gen. Ramezan Sharif, spokesman for the Guard, said the U.S. military personnel were to be debriefed.
"If it is determined, after the investigation is carried out, that their action was not intentional, another approach will be taken," he said. "But If it's determined, after they are debriefed and interviewed, that their entry (into Iran's territorial waters) was for intelligence gathering or irrelevant action, definitely the authorities will take the necessary measures."
Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook told The Associated Press late Tuesday U.S. time that the Riverine boats were moving between Kuwait and Bahrain when the U.S. lost contact with them.
U.S. officials said that the incident happened near Farsi Island in the middle of the Gulf. They said some type of mechanical trouble with one of the boats caused them to drift into Iranian territorial waters near the island, and they were picked up by Iran.
"We have been in contact with Iran and have received assurances that the crew and the vessels will be returned promptly," Cook said late Tuesday, U.S. time.
The incident came amid heightened tensions with Iran, and only hours before President Barack Obama gave his final State of the Union address to Congress and the public. It set off a dramatic series of calls and meetings as U.S. officials tried to determine the exact status of the crew and reach out to Iranian leaders.
Kerry, who forged a personal relationship with Zarif through three years of nuclear negotiations, called his Iranian counterpart immediately on learning of the incident, according to a senior U.S. official. Kerry "personally engaged with Zarif on this issue to try to get to this outcome," the official said.
Kerry learned of the incident around 12:30 p.m. EST as he and Defense Secretary Ash Carter were meeting their Filipino counterparts at the State Department, the official said.
Officials said the sailors were part of Riverine Squadron 1 based in San Diego and were deployed to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet in Bahrain. When the U.S. lost contact with the boats, ships attached to the USS Harry S Truman aircraft carrier strike group began searching the area, along with aircraft flying off the Truman.
Officials said a radio signal from one of the boats showed that they were on Farsi Island, setting off efforts to contact the Iranians. The Riverine boats were not part of the carrier strike group, and were on a training mission as they traveled between Kuwait and Bahrain, officials said.
The Riverine boats are not considered high-tech and don't contain any sensitive equipment, so there were no concerns about the Iranians gaining access to the crafts.
The officials were not authorized to discuss the sensitive incident publicly so spoke on condition of anonymity.
The incident came on the heels of an incident in late December when Iran launched a rocket test near U.S. warships and boats passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile, Iran was expected to satisfy the terms of last summer's nuclear deal in just days. Once the U.N. nuclear agency confirms Iran's actions to roll back its program, the United States and other Western powers are obliged to suspend wide-ranging oil, trade and financial sanctions on Tehran. Kerry recently said the deal's implementation was "days away."
http://www.stripes.com/news/middle-east/10-sailors-detained-in-iran-returned-to-us-navy-1.388443
Here's the other ...
:munchin
Iran released U.S. sailors in international waters
Reuters
DUBAI - Iran released ten U.S. sailors on Wednesday after holding them overnight, bringing a swift end to an incident that had rattled nerves days ahead of the expected implementation of a landmark nuclear accord between Tehran and world powers.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said it had freed the sailors after determining they had entered Iranian territorial waters by mistake. The sailors had been detained aboard two U.S. Navy patrol boats in the Gulf on Tuesday.
"Our technical investigations showed the two U.S. Navy boats entered Iranian territorial waters inadvertently," the IRGC said in a statement carried by state television. "They were released in international waters after they apologized," it added.
IRGC Rear Admiral Ali Fadavi had earlier said that the two U.S. Navy boats entered Iranian territorial waters due to a broken navigation system.
The incident raised tensions between Iran and the United States, which, along with other world powers, reached a deal last year under which Iran will curb its nuclear activities in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.
Some conservatives in both countries, enemies since Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution, have criticized the deal that is due to be implemented in the coming days.
Iran's armed forces chief, Major General Hassan Firouzabadi, said the incident should demonstrate Iranian strength to "troublemakers" in the U.S. Congress, which has sought to put pressure on Iran after the nuclear deal.
And at a presidential campaign rally in the United States, Republican frontrunner Donald Trump, who accuses President Barack Obama of being weak on foreign policy, described the incident as "an indication of where the hell we're going".
DE-ESCALATION
Attributing the boats' incursion into Iranian waters to a navigation error marked a de-escalation in rhetoric. Earlier, the Guards had said the boats were "snooping" in Iranian territory and said Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif had demanded an apology from Washington.
The IRGC, the Islamic Republic's praetorian guard, is highly suspicious of U.S. military activity near Iran's borders and many senior officers suspect Washington of pursuing regime change in Tehran.
The Guards operate land and naval units separate to the regular armed forces and stage frequent wargames in the Gulf, which separates Iran from its regional rival Saudi Arabia and a U.S. naval base in Bahrain.
Last month, the U.S. Navy said an IRGC vessel fired unguided rockets near the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping route for crude oil that connects the Gulf to the Indian Ocean. Iran denied the vessel had done so.
In April 2015, the Guards seized a container ship belonging to Maersk, one of the world's major shipping lines, in the Gulf because of a legal dispute between the company and Iran. The ship and its 24 crew members were released after 10 days.
The Guards have also seized British servicemen on two occasions, in 2004 and 2007, and a civilian British yacht crew in 2009. On each occasion the sailors were released unharmed after several days.
Looks like at least one female riverina was captured..
http://www.military.com/daily-news/2016/01/13/10-sailors-detained-in-iran-returned-to-us-navy.html?ESRC=eb.nl
I'd like to hear your explanation on how two boats lost radio contact and possibly both suffered mechanical failures that made them drift to an island. :munchin
I'd like to hear less from you!
We got nobody backing us up here. Nothing.
1)If there was an ROE,, it was not functioning.. :mad:
2)500 K open water run with no CAS???
3)posted pics seem to infer they were running CB-90's.. They have a range of 240 nmi (440 km) at 20 knots (37 km/h).
Me thinks there is skulduggery afoot??
:munchin
Maybe the riverine boats were making a delivery to Obama's new besties.
Word got out at the last minute and the cover story was that they got captured adrift...
The Reaper
01-13-2016, 11:57
All of those guns, you would think some of them would have worked.
I wonder what their ROE was?
TR
Team Sergeant
01-13-2016, 12:19
I remember when other countries were afraid to provoke us.
And it was not that long ago.
Maybe Kerry will go back to kiss the Iranians' asses again and beg for the sailors' release. Offer Obama's apologies for intruding in international waters. :rolleyes:
Not much else going to happen.
TR
Funny when they do there's been an incompetent spineless moron sitting in the White House.....
Just wait until President Trump takes office, it will be just like when President Reagan took office.......:munchin
Streck-Fu
01-13-2016, 12:57
Now that they are released....
Badger52
01-13-2016, 16:26
Now that they are released....They and everyone in their chain will be signing a fresh new set of NDA's.
"Broke down..." "drifted..." my ass. From some past incidents it seems the IRGC is still making up their own RoE on the fly.
But, hey, we got ourselves "a deal!"
WarriorDiplomat
01-13-2016, 17:27
Funny when they do there's been an incompetent spineless moron sitting in the White House.....
Just wait until President Trump takes office, it will be just like when President Reagan took office.......:munchin
You're damn straight
WarriorDiplomat
01-13-2016, 17:31
All of those guns, you would think some of them would have worked.
I wonder what their ROE was?
TR
Not sure but I would suspect it wasn't to start a war with Iran especially with this POTUS hell he may offer to have the fleet drop anchor and let Iran take free shots for 30 days as a peace deal AND an apology.
Bleed Green
01-13-2016, 23:52
Just wait until President Trump takes office, it will be just like when President Reagan took office.......:munchin
I am thinking that a little Aretha Franklin, Oh Happy Days is in order.
Guymullins
01-14-2016, 01:35
All of those guns, you would think some of them would have worked.
I wonder what their ROE was?
TR
Jeez fellas, this is embarrassing. In 23 years of Bush War, we had two soldiers taken prisoner. One badly wounded, the other un-armed.
Jeez fellas, this is embarrassing. In 23 years of Bush War, we had two soldiers taken prisoner. One badly wounded, the other un-armed.
Desert Shield/Storm had a number of US taken as POWs.
But we know now this incident was because the Navy got lost. At least that's what the head Navy Dude says.
You'd think they had more nav gear then you could fit in a rucksack. And the Iranians want to keep it?
Badger52
01-15-2016, 12:55
You'd think they had more nav gear then you could fit in a rucksack.Yes sir, something's not tracking. I went flying not long ago with a friend who had the latest toys (but still knows how to use a sectional & compass, which is all I had back when). He had a simple electronic toy that clipped to his kneeboard, basically an app for his iPad, overlayed with all the stuff he needed to avoid things like the ANG base to the east and the AAF delineation & DZ on the south of the nearby base. I knew where this stuff was by sight but he did fine in skirting all of the "don't go here" gates. Have a hard time believing the USN has anything less.
:rolleyes:
Jeez fellas, this is embarrassing. In 23 years of Bush War, we had two soldiers taken prisoner. One badly wounded, the other un-armed.
Twenty-three years? :confused: There were 8 POWs that were returned and several soldiers that were captured and executed.
Pat
Old Dog New Trick
01-15-2016, 13:08
As I watched this play out and then there was the timing. The come away answer was "create a media crisis to take the SOTU out of the headlines."
That's the only thing that makes any sense to me. I'd say it worked. No one remembers what the president said and what he plans to do in his last year.
Golf clap all around!
Guymullins
01-15-2016, 15:06
Twenty-three years? :confused: There were 8 POWs that were returned and several soldiers that were captured and executed.
Pat
The war lasted from 1966 to 1989. There were four non-combatant mechanics abducted when they went to recover a vehicle in Angola who were treated as POWS by SWAPO and the MPLA and there were a few other soldiers, including a medic, Bruce Fiddler who was injured, captured, tortured and executed because he wouldn't reveal the whereabouts of his fellow medics to the enemy. Bruce got the Honorus Crux, our version of the MOH. Sapper van der Mescht was maintaining a borehole when he was captured and the two chaps with him executed . Wynand du Toit a Recce (Our SF) was wounded and captured during a sabotage mission. A few of his section were executed on site.
Incidentally, I was on an airborne raid that was, among other things, tasked to rescue van der Mescht but he had been transferred from the camp we attacked two weeks earlier
The war lasted from 1966 to 1989. There were four non-combatant mechanics abducted when they went to recover a vehicle in Angola who were treated as POWS by SWAPO and the MPLA and there were a few other soldiers, including a medic, Bruce Fiddler who was injured, captured, tortured and executed because he wouldn't reveal the whereabouts of his fellow medics to the enemy. Bruce got the Honorus Crux, our version of the MOH. Sapper van der Mescht was maintaining a borehole when he was captured and the two chaps with him executed . Wynand du Toit a Recce (Our SF) was wounded and captured during a sabotage mission. A few of his section were executed on site.
Incidentally, I was on an airborne raid that was, among other things, tasked to rescue van der Mescht but he had been transferred from the camp we attacked two weeks earlier
Oh! I read Bush war as being George W.'s war. ;)
Pat
Roguish Lawyer
01-15-2016, 16:02
:D
Legion3G4V
01-15-2016, 21:23
As a whole, this event has been a total shit show. But what I found most disheartening was the apology performed by the young Navy leader. "It was a mistake. That was our fault. And we apologize for our mistake.” What in the actual F-in A!? Understanding that there are "peacetime" provisions to the CoC, but this shit was beyond infuriating.
And the best the administration heads can come back with is "boo hoo, geneva convention violation."
And of course there is this:
"Secretary of State John Kerry and others have cited the peaceful resolution as a “testament” to diplomacy and the new U.S.-Iran relationship, as they welcome Iran into the “community of nations.” - Link (http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/01/13/iranian-footage-shows-us-sailor-apology-arrest-in-gulf-incident.html)
Yea...diplomacy seems to be working out well.
As I watched this play out and then there was the timing. The come away answer was "create a media crisis to take the SOTU out of the headlines."
That's the only thing that makes any sense to me. I'd say it worked. No one remembers what the president said and what he plans to do in his last year.
Golf clap all around!
I think that part has to do with fact, no one was watching the SOTU.
:munchin
The Iranian video on the linked page shows some interesting details I haven't seen elsewhere:
http://presstv.ir/Detail/2016/01/13/445686/Iran-US-marines-IRGC-Persian-Gulf-Farsi-ISland/
Last hard class
01-16-2016, 14:38
So there were two boats. Did they both break down?
Couldn't one tow the other so as not to drift into unfriendly waters?
I expect SOP is to run in pairs to prevent this type of problem.
LHC
So there were two boats. Did they both break down?
Couldn't one tow the other so as not to drift into unfriendly waters?
I expect SOP is to run in pairs to prevent this type of problem.
The latest party line is that it wasn't a breakdown -- the language is now "strayed" instead of "drifted."
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2016/01/14/pentagon-chief-says-u-s-navy-boats-strayed-off-course-because-of-navigational-error/
However, something still sounds fishy. Here's a link to one former SEAL's view about what might have happened:
http://www.newsfoxes.com/2016/01/navy-seal-calls-bs-on-obama/
Badger52
01-16-2016, 15:56
The latest party line is that it wasn't a breakdown -- the language is now "strayed" instead of "drifted."
And the next sub-committee hearing to determine who last handled the "talking points" in 3... 2...
:munchin
Y'all are so cynical...I mean...
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=YtY8gDEWeiM
Sailors be watching another damn YouTube video and before ya know it...they "strayed..."
Combine that, with the damn Persian Gulf triangle...just screws with all navigation equipment.
And, maybe Lurch just needed some airtime.
Or, ValJarr needed another excuse to phone home.
So there were two boats. Did they both break down?
Couldn't one tow the other so as not to drift into unfriendly waters?
I expect SOP is to run in pairs to prevent this type of problem.
LHC
They were Swiftboated. Bush's fault! ;)
Pat
p.s.: Happy New Year to you and our family!
Legion3G4V
01-18-2016, 17:42
"In an effort to defuse the controversy over the brief capture of 10 Navy sailors last week, the Defense Department on Monday released a timeline of events surrounding the seizure, but the account was spare on new details and left several fundamental questions unanswered."
Several articles reviewed also made mention of two missing SIM cards that were confiscated by IRGC from Sat Phones that were onboard.
"Senior Pentagon officials said the timeline contained limited new information because the Navy was reviewing the actions of the sailors, who could face stiff judicial and administrative punishment for the episode. The Navy does not want to prejudice the outcome of that inquiry by offering too many details, the officials said."
Link (http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/19/us/politics/navy-releases-timeline-of-irans-capture-of-us-sailors.html?_r=0)
Guymullins
01-19-2016, 01:55
Oh! I read Bush war as being George W.'s war. ;)
Pat
I am sure the Democrats will make it last that long.
YOU GOTTA BE FVCKING KIDDING ME !?!?!?
Does Barry want a coup to take him out of office ???
Navy officer fired over Iran's detention of 10 sailors
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Navy has fired the commander of the 10 American sailors who wandered into Iranian territorial waters in the Persian Gulf and were captured and held by Iran for about 15 hours.
In a statement Thursday, the Navy said it had lost confidence in Cmdr. Eric Rasch, who was the executive officer of the squadron that included the 10 sailors at the time of the January incident. He was responsible for the training and readiness of the more than 400 sailors in the unit.
A Navy official said Rasch failed to provide effective leadership, leading to a lack of oversight, complacency and failure to maintain standards in the unit. The official was not authorized to discuss the details publicly so spoke on condition of anonymity.
Rasch has been relieved of his command duties and reassigned, the Navy said.
Although this is the first firing by the Navy regarding the incident, several other sailors received administrative reprimands. The investigation is expected to be finished by the end of the month, and others are likely to be disciplined.
Rasch was promoted to commander of the unit in April — after the Iran incident occurred, but before the preliminary investigation was done.
The sailors, nine men and one woman, were detained after their boat drifted into Iranian waters off Farsi Island, an outpost in the middle of the Persian Gulf that has been used as a base for Revolutionary Guard speedboats since the 1980s.
The sailors were on two small armed vessels, known as riverine command boats, on a 300-mile journey from Kuwait to Bahrain, where the Navy's 5th Fleet is located. The incident, while brief, raised tensions between the U.S. and Iran because of images Iran published of the soldiers kneeling with their hands on their heads. It caused political uproar at home, too, coming on the day of President Barack Obama's final State of the Union address and months after the signing of a deal with Iran to curb its nuclear program in exchange for relief from financial penalties.
Navy Capt. Gary Leigh, commander of Riverine Group 1, decided to fire Rasch after Leigh reviewed the initial investigation. A Navy official said no action has been taken, at least so far, against Cmdr. Greg Meyer, who was serving as commander of the squadron when the incident happened. He is no longer in a command job.
Defense Secretary Ash Carter said the sailors made a navigational error and went off course.
An initial account said the "planned transit path for the mission was down the middle of the Gulf and not through the territorial waters of any country other than Kuwait and Bahrain."
That account said the crew stopped when a diesel engine in one of the boats appeared to have a mechanical issue. The second boat also stopped.
At this point they were in Iranian territorial waters, "although it's not clear the crew was aware of their exact location," the report said.
While the boats were stopped and the crew was trying to assess the mechanical problem, two small Iranian craft carrying armed personnel approached. Soon after, they were joined by two more Iranian military vessels. A verbal exchange ensued between the Iranians and Americans, but there was no gunfire.
The sailors had been scheduled to meet up with a U.S. Coast Guard ship, the Monomoy, in international waters to refuel. But about 10 minutes before the refueling was supposed to take place, the Navy headquarters in Bahrain got a report that Iranians were questioning the crew members.
Soon afterward, the Navy lost communications with the boats.
The Navy launched a large-scale search-and-rescue mission, but it is not clear whether the Americans had already been taken ashore on Farsi Island. The Iranians eventually told the U.S. that the 10 sailors were safe and healthy.
Secretary of State John Kerry, in a series of phone calls, used the personal relationship he has formed with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to work out the crews' release. Kerry credited the quick resolution to the "critical role diplomacy plays in keeping our country secure and strong."
https://www.yahoo.com/news/navy-officer-fired-over-irans-detention-10-sailors-221237061--politics.html