Iran releases sailors as a ‘gift’

TEHRAN: President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Iran would free the 15 detained British sailors and marines on Wednesday as an Easter holiday “gift” to the British people.

He said the captives, who were seized while on patrol in the northern Persian Gulf on March 23, would be taken to the airport following his news conference, but Iranian state television reported they would leave Iran on Thursday. An Iranian official in London said they would be handed over to British diplomats in Tehran.

After the news conference, state television showed Ahmadinejad meeting with the British crew, dressed in business suits, at the presidential palace. He shook hands and chatted with them through a translator. “We appreciate it ,” one of the crew could be heard telling Ahmadinejad in English.

In London, the office of PM Tony Blair said it welcomed the news. The surprise announcement came shortly after Ahmadinejad pinned a medal on the chest of the Iranian coast guard commander who intercepted the sailors and marines.