Standoff Over Britons Held In Iran Escalates

LONDON, March 28 — Britains dispute with Iran over 15 captured sailors and marines escalated sharply today when Britain froze all "bilateral business" with Tehran and Iran displayed some British prisoners on state television — an act condemned by the Foreign Office here as "completely unacceptable."

Faye Turney with an unidentified sailor, centre, and an unidentified marine in footage broadcast today by Al-Alam, an Arabic-language, Iranian state-run television station.

Faye Turney was shown on Iranian TV today, hours after Tehran said she would be released before Friday.

One of the captured sailors, Faye Turney, 26, the only woman among them, was shown wearing a black head-scarf and saying "obviously we trespassed into their waters." She also praised her captors as "very friendly, very hospitable and very thoughtful, nice people. They explained to us why we had been arrested."

Irans foreign minister, Manouchehr Mottaki, attending a meeting in Saudi Arabia, had indicated earlier that Ms. Turney could be released soon. "There was no hurt or harm," Ms. Turney said in the television footage. "They were very, very compassionate."

Iranian authorities also made public what they said was a letter written Thursday by Ms. Turney to her family saying: "We were out in the boats when we were arrested by Iranian forces as we had apparently gone into Iranian waters. I wish we hadnt because then I would be home with you all right now. Im so sorry we did because I know we wouldnt be here now if we hadnt. I want you all to know that I am well and safe.

"I am being well looked after, I am fed three meals a day and Im in constant supply of fluids," the letter said. Her words were addressed in part to her three-year-old daughter Molly and husband Adam.

The circumstances in which she recorded her words and wrote the letter were not clear. Some of the captured Britons were shown in a room eating a meal with her, but it was also not clear the extent to which the tape had been edited. In one section she was wearing a black and white checkered head-dress and in another a black head scarf.

After the video tape was broadcast, Margaret Beckett, the British Foreign Secretary, said that she was concerned about "any indication of pressure on, or coercion of, our personnel."

British officials have been denied access to the captured sailors and their whereabouts were not disclosed. Britain renewed its demand on Thursday for the release of its sailors.

Ms. Turneys remarks contradicted insistence in London that the British sailors had been in Iraqi waters where they patrol under Iraqi and United Nations auspices to interdict smugglers and protect oil installations.

Earlier Prime Minister Tony Blair told parliament that the British sailors, captured on March 23, were acting legally and in Iraqi waters.

"It is now time to ratchet up international and diplomatic pressure in order to make sure that the Iranian government understands their total isolation on this issue," he told parliament.

The Royal Navy also took the highly unusual step of making public charts, photographs and previously secret navigational coordinates purportedly proving that the British sailors were 1.7 nautical miles — roughly 1.95 miles on land — inside Iraqi waters when they were apprehended at gun-point and forced into Iranian waters.

The toughened British posture heightened the sense of crisis that has sent oil prices soaring.

The Royal Navys disclosures opened a coordinated diplomatic barrage by some of the most senior British officials, including Mr. Blair and Mrs. Beckett, the Foreign Secretary, who told parliament that Britain would "be imposing a freeze on all other official bilateral business with Iran until the situation is resolved."

"The Iranian authorities have so far failed to meet any of our demands or responded to our desire to resolve this issue quickly and quietly, through behind the scenes diplomacy," Mrs. Beckett said, explaining Britains decision to go public and offer some kind of retaliation, if only symbolic.

The government had been under political pressure at home to show itself as more muscular after being accused in newspaper editorials of being timid toward Iran. At the same time, though, many analysts said Mr. Blair had embarked on a risky strategy that could backfire if Iran responded to pressure by digging in its heels and refusing to free its captives.

The decision by Iranian television to show footage of the 15 captives rekindled memories of a similar episode in 2004 when eight other British captives were paraded blindfolded on Iranian television.

Britain has little direct official bilateral business with Iran beyond sporting and cultural ties and some humanitarian assistance to refugees and earthquake victims, according to an assessment on the Foreign Office website (http://www.fco.gov.uk).

Prince Charles, the heir to the throne, visited Iran in 2004 to show concern after the Bam earthquake.

Britains more significant diplomatic and political business with Iran is conducted as part of a troika of European nations along with France and Germany pressing Iran to limit its nuclear ambitions.

Sebnem Arsu contributed reporting from Istanbul

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