Iranian TV airs video clips of 2 captured UK soldiers
Clips show two of 15 captured British sailors, who say they are being treated well as they point to map of Persian Gulf
The TV broadcasts said the two sailors were identifying where their boat crossed into Iranian waters on March 23, leading to their capture.
The British sailors and marines were detained by Iranian naval units while patrolling for smugglers as part of a UN-mandated force patrolling the Persian Gulf. Iran insists the sailors had trespassed into its waters, but Britain says the team was in Iraqi waters.
Two Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting channels, which are in Farsi, showed the two sailors, who wore military fatigues and appeared relaxed, in separate video clips. They both pointed at the same map of the Persian Gulf.
The first sailor, who was identified by the IRIB channels in Farsi as Capt. Chris Eir, told the camera after pointing at the map that the captured sailors have been "treated very well by all the people here. They look after us. ... We've been treated very well and we thank you for that."
The second sailor pointed to an area on the map and told the camera that location was where he and the 14 others were arrested.
"I'd like to say to the Iranian people, I can understand why you are so angry about our intrusion into your waters," said the sailor, who was identified by IRIB in Farsi as Felix Karmon.
The government-run Arabic-language TV station also broadcasted the video clips of the sailors but did not air their voices. Instead, the newscaster said the two "have confessed" to trespassing into Iranian waters "illegally."
Britain's Foreign Office denounces video
The newscaster also gave more details about the incident, saying the 15 left their ship in a small boat in the morning of March 23 and entered the Iranian waters at 10 am local time. The TV broadcast also said the captured sailors have said that they are receiving "good and humanitarian treatment."Britain's Foreign Office denounced the video, saying it was "completely unacceptable for these pictures to be shown on TV."
The video came as the British government said it was in direct contact with Iran over the captive crew and as hundreds of Islamist, hard-line Iranian students protested outside the British Embassy in Tehran. The students threw rocks and firecrackers at the British Embassy on Sunday, calling for the expulsion of the country's ambassador.
Several dozen policemen prevented the protesters from entering the embassy compound, although a few briefly scaled a fence outside the facility's walls before being pushed back, according to an Associated Press reporter at the scene.
Meanwhile, British Defense Secretary Des Browne said his government was in "Direct, bilateral communication with the Iranians." A Ministry of Defense spokeswoman said Browne was referring to letters and other contacts between diplomats, rather than any new face-to-face talks.
Browne, on a visit to Afghanistan, said Britain had "the support of almost the whole international community" in calling for the release of its personnel.
Al-Alam previously had broadcast more lengthy video footage on Friday of captured marine Nathan Thomas Summers. It that video, Summers admitted to trespassing in Iranian waters.
"We illegally trespassed on Iran's territorial waters and were arrested by the Iranian border guards and I would like to apologize to the Iranian people for the issue," Summers said.
He was shown sitting with another serviceman and the female British sailor Faye Turney against a floral curtain. Both servicemen wore camouflage fatigues with a Royal Navy label on their chests and a little British flag stitched to their left sleeves.
Al-Alam also aired a video on Wednesday showing Turney wearing a headscarf. "Obviously we trespassed," Turney said in the video.
