Blair: Seizure of UK troops by Iran 'very serious' »
Posted by: coreyspring 1 year, 5 months ago140 Comments Report this Story
British Prime Minister Tony Blair said Sunday that the 15 British sailors and Royal Marines captured by Iran were not in Iranian waters and warned Tehran that Britain viewed their fate as a "fundamental" issue.
Read Full Story at cnn.com
Join the Discussion 
+ Add Comment
Comments So Far: 140
-
-
100%
CaptainShev1 year, 5 months ago
Well, I expect our Prime Minister will drink some tea with the Queen and discuss how best we can maintain this 'stiff upper lip' in order to keep up our good standing in the eyes of the Empire...
Do you have all your knowledge of England from 'Biggles' novels?
Reply
-
-
100%
icono11 year, 5 months ago
Interesting this has become a fundamental issue to the Brit's. The question is ... fundamental in what way.
Reply -
100%
SantaM1 year, 5 months ago
really? because Ahmedinijad isnt dumb. and that, to me anyway, sounds dumb. the way you show the world you wont be pushed around is you abduct these poor guys. hold em for an hour or two. make a british diplomat say something stupid, like we respect Iran, then release them by the end of the day. this isn't that. this is serious. you don't abduct soldiers of another country who are DEPLOYED AND AT WAR unless you want in on that war.
im not trying to be over dramatic, but the logistics of the situation seem simple enough. iran knows there are two reactions to something like this. you do nothing or you do something. and with the state of the world, and the obvious involvemtn Brittain already has, they will do something. what will they do? get back their soldiers.
and iran also knows theyll do it with the full support of the US military. its that, or nothing, remember... and iran knows they wont do nothing.
iran is posturing to provoke an invasion. thats what i think.
Reply -
-
67%
walden31 year, 5 months ago
he said. she said.
seems like it would be pretty easy to discover. couldn't one just look at radar images from the time they were seized and superimpose it on a map?
am i missing something here?
Reply-
0%
Shirtless1 year, 5 months ago
Your comment assumes that radar images were made and are available to view. If the British Marines were engaged in a secret mission, that might not have been done. And further, not everyone is as egotistical as Richard Nixon so as to try to make a record of everything that is said or done.
Reply
-
-
100%
Shirtless1 year, 5 months ago
Implicit in your comment is the assumption that the United Nations is somehow a higher legal or moral authority than the United Kingdom or the European Union. Neither the United Nations nor the European Union should be permitted to trump the sovereignty of any nation. The UN is simply the modern version of the League of Nations, a useless organization foisted on the world by the delusional, egotistical, self-righteous, and meglomaniac Woodrow Wilson after the First World War.
Reply
-
-
0%
knight-templer1 year, 5 months ago
It's clearly time to act Mr Blair; give the Iranians 48 hours to release & return these 15 members of the British Forces 'unharmed' that were illegally taken or it should be taken as a clear act of war by Iran upon the UK. Failiure to comply should mean it's time for the UK to declair war on Iran. This is the ideal gift-horse that shouldn't be over-looked, the Iranians have been so stupid to serve themselves up on the plate. Or maybe they actually want to force the UK into a fight? Either way give it to them.....
Reply-
-
-
0%
IcCaRus1 year, 5 months ago
it would accomplish exactly what these lunatic chickenhawks want... war with iran. if uk declares, they will be up in arms for us to back our ally by declaring war....
funny thing is, (actually not very funny when you think of the consequences) these idiots actually think war with iran is a good thing.....
why? simple, the PuppetMaster told the Duh-cider its a good idea. meanwhile, they have rush, mAnn, and BilgeO spewing it to every kool-aid drinking con out there.
Reply
-
-
-
-
100%
honeydripper1 year, 5 months ago
This is sad if not ridiculous! I am a lifelong US citizen with full English blood lines, and a Christian, but I believe the Iranians, and believe the US had a hand in this! Most people know Lil' Georgie has a hard-on for Iran a mile long, and anyplace he wants to trash, Tag-a-long Tony will happily attend. There have been hundreds of reports of the US sending man and machine into Iran, i.e., drone fly overs, political antagonizers, etc., egging them into a fight, but those tricks haven't worked. We also went so far as to capture their people from their embassy in Iraq, making false accusations, but that didn't work either. Bush can't approach a microphone without spewing the same tired B.S. about Iran having WMD's, just like we (falsly) heard a million times about Iraq. Now the Brits were either in Iran's waters (which they confessed) or they were on the border. With ALL that WATER out there, did they have to be that close to Iran, if they weren't looking for trouble?
Reply-
0%
Edmar141 year, 5 months ago
It's obvious that you don't like Bush. That's your right, but instead of spouting off your same old B.S., hire an attorney, have Bush charged with something and go after him. It gets tiresome listening to the same old diatribe. Grow some Balls and prove your charges against Bush, the US and anybody else that you can't stand, but at least don't spout your lineage and then slander it. If you know for a fact that the US had a hand in this, do something about it, if not, shut up. Freedom of speech ends where someone else's nose begins.
Reply-
100%
DanmLiberals1 year, 5 months ago
Edmar, that's right on. There are hundreds if not thousands of organizations that hate Bush but nothing ever seems to happen. No lawsuits, no charges, no nothing. All they amount to is making false claims so they feel better about hating Bush. If Iran attacked us and blew up the Golden Gate Bridge, they would find a way to make it Bushes fault.
I think Iran is just trying to show the world that they are "tough" and we know that somewhere there are Muslims celebrating the capture of the soldiers. When people are happy that you are a hostage, then u will know who the real enemy is.
Reply
-
-
-
0%
honeydripper1 year, 5 months ago
Why some readers of this article can't see that they are getting the same B.S. job they got pre-Iraq war, is beyond me? Everyday in dozens of ways, Bush and the media are pounding into people's heads how BAD the Iranians are, and and good, sweet, and innocent our side is! Just as Iran is getting set-up for a war, the people are also getting set-up to support that war! It's all the same re-fried tricks, the same lies, the same excuses, stories, and reasons they used for attacking Iraq, except freshened up a tiny bit for a new victim, and a used cheering section. This is disgusting, and we just can't keep throwing our military weight and nuclear muscle around. Those people have not done a damn thing to us, or anyone else for that matter. The Iraqis didn't do anything to us either, but now there are OVER a MILLION DEAD, thanks to us! We can't keep doing this, it just isn't right, and there will be consequences. Nobody stays on top forever, and we won't be the first!
Reply-
0%
DanmLiberals1 year, 5 months ago
SM43, there is no reason to argue against these type of Libs. because they make excuses in their mind that have no sensible explanation, but are used just to try to justify the fact that they hate Bush and everything is his fault. WTC is a big example of this and they would rather blame Bush than the Muslims that are so happy about WTC that they are dancing in th street.
My only hope is too see one of these SOB's in the street and kick some sense into them.
Reply -
100%
Candida1 year, 5 months ago
sm43,
The problem is that everybody seems to be lying all the time, so it's hard to believe either side. I'll wait until all the facts are out before I make up my mind. By the way, the fisherman said it was around the border, not that it was clearly in Iraqi waters.
The fact that the sailors captured in 2004 admitted that they were in Iranian waters muddies the waters a bit too.
Reply -
100%
djrevelky1 year, 5 months ago
The wonders of the mind of the American liberal never cease to amaze me. George Bush is the stupidest president in American history in their mind and he cannot do anything right...but this moron is the mastermind of 9/11, can fake intelligence from 5 different countries, controls the weather of Katrina to make it kill all of the black people, and now he controls Iran and makes them enter Iraqi waters to seize British sailors so we can go to war with them. Yeah....that makes a lot of sense, I guess Bush is God since he controls all of the decisions that everyone in the world makes along with the weather.
Reply -
0%
Edmar141 year, 5 months ago
Honeydripper, It's obvious that you are extremely young and extrememly niave. You've probably never served in an american uniform or any uniform for that matter, you've never held public office, you probably took a civics or political science course in school and that makes you an experienced expert on American policy. And, you don't have any recollection of the American embassy take over by Iran in 1979. They've done plenty to us.
Reply-
HanymanComment removed: User banned.11 Replies
-
0%
honeydripper1 year, 5 months ago
Iran has NEVER, NEVER made the first move against the USA! We SCREWED those people royaly when WE took out their LOVED and ELECTED President, then installed our own LAP DOG, the Shaw, who was WORSE to them by FAR, than Saddam was to the Iraqi people. Between the suffering and deaths caused by OUR SHAW, and the suffering and deaths caused by our backing (with germ & gas warfare,) and indeed propting of Saddam to start a war with them, WE have single handedly caused them more death and destruction than any other, and all other nations on earth, and you don't like the fact that they captured our embassy and temporarily detained a few of ouor citizens? They detained a few of ours, we caused the death of a few MILLION of theirs! How would you like the USA if you would have watched your family suffer and die as the result of poison gas and germ warfare, that WE GAVE Saddam, along with our blessings, and a complete target list and coordinates?
Reply
-
-
-
100%
lycase1 year, 5 months ago
whether or not they were in iranian waters is unimportant. the iranians are blatantly tryin to start a war with these acts. they are tryin to obtain nukes and they threaten to wipe us off the earth. not to mention their funding and arming of terrorists. obviously these peoples are very hostile something needs to be done. this is not just a UK problem this is the worlds problem as britains ever lasting allies they stood up for us through the Iraq war so we must help them in Iran this is both an American and a British problem
Reply-
100%
Candida1 year, 5 months ago
lycase,
Please explain to me how it is unimportant whether they were in Iranian waters. If some foreign country started to search ships within the territorial waters of the US, what would the US do? Would it be right to do it? How is it different for Iran?
You are saying: "they threaten to wipe us off the earth." First of all, this is not true. Secondly, how would a country with no nuclear weapon wipe off the earth another country several times its size and with gazillions of nuclear weapons?
Reply
-
-
-
-
0%
IcCaRus1 year, 5 months ago
ani-
please take your revisionist history somewhere else. only the stupid and uninformed buy your drek.
heres the latest example of your B$:
"They gave him and his minions an Empassy in 1979"... (its emBassy, by the way) that statement is just so wrong it would take days to address it, so i wont even bother. only the choir believes it anyway...
heres my point, what you said is OPINION... heres a FACT: Reagan gave him and his minions illegal weapons in '80.
Reply
-
-
-
100%
NelsonR1 year, 5 months ago
If the Theocracy in Iran wish to promote Islam to the world, I am baffled as to their direction. They desire a nuke, allow them the privelege since I can think of many aiming points within their country for responsive action. If Islamist or if you prefer, Muslim, refrain from an attitude of piety I think the world would prosper. We do not all want to be Muslims, do you hear us, we do not want any part of your archaic and primal religion. Now live your life and allow us to live ours.
By the way I was watching an interesting T.V. show about pirates of the 16th century raiding England and promoting slavery and Islam, is that your continuing conviction, to convert the infidel? I say it as I see it. Islam is an outdated, archaic and abominable religious conviction towards worlds peace. Simple thought and conclusion but true. The acts committed by those Islamist radicals against the innocent prove my point, so I need not further my rhetoric.
Reply -
-
100%
IcCaRus1 year, 5 months ago
yep, theyre losers alright.
all those losers ever did was become the first people the romans couldnt conquer. then, if i recall correctly, they established an even bigger empire than the romans. ever heard the saying "the sun never sets on the british empire"? they said that because it was true.
then those losers held off the biggest military machine the world had ever seen up to that time, the SECOND time in their history they did that, by the way. the RAF was outnumbered 10 to 1, but they kicked the Luftwaffes @ss. occupied france was only 21 miles away, but they kept the germans off their shores. yeah, losers for sure.
the brits certainly arent perfect, but theyre far from losers.
Reply -
0%
honeydripper1 year, 5 months ago
This is NOT why they went to war! Don't you read or listen? The Israeli government ADMITTED (in a story published right here on Netscape about 2 weeks ago,) that they had the invasion of Lebanon PLANNED FOR MONTHS IN ADVANCE, and that they were waiting for an excuse. Do the research!
Reply
-
-
-
0%
tanglang1 year, 5 months ago
Actually, they would fire it at Israel. Then us. They are open about their goal of wiping Israel off the face of the Earth. As with their goal of destroying the west. Russia's leaders were far more intelligent than Iran's. They knew the consquenses of nuclear war. Also, the Russians are not proud of suicide. The Iranian muslims believe that if they are destroyed by us after nuking our people, that they will be martyrs. Maybe you should learn about our enemy, before siding with them.
Reply
-
-
-
75%
NelsonR1 year, 5 months ago
adinas - I don't know where you are from but the British have been one of the few faithful allies for America. If they needed to get their soldiers back from the corrupt theocracy in Iran through war, I'm with them. Now I say that believeing and espousing Americas withdrawal from Iraq since it is and has been a wrong perpetrated by our inane leader Bush. So before you call the Brits wimpy, spelled wrong by the way, get your facts straight, and history.
Reply -
100%
cboath3151 year, 5 months ago
The kidnapping of the British sailors was an attempt by Iran to prevent the tougher UN sanctions from passing. Since this didn't work Iran will continue to hold the sailors until the Brits bring in more warships into the region. Once the Iranian government realizes that there are enough cruise missles to take out all government buildings twice over in the area they'll release the sailors.
Reply-
100%
roguetraderh1 year, 5 months ago
bang on cboath, their just trying to buy some time and get some leverage. The Uk and US will send a couple more boats there and as just as they are about to invade they'll make some empty promises to stop the nuke program and hand over the hostages. Uk and US leave, then they start again. Our governments and the UN are being played like a cheap violin. US/Uk leaders have to have the nuts to say - 24hrs give them back/stop the nuke crap or we dance.
Reply
-
