Iran stepped up its propaganda offensive against Britain last night by broadcasting new footage of two of the 15 captured service personnel on al-Alam television, including another "confession" that they had strayed into Iranian waters.
The two are each pictured in front of a map of what appears to be the Persian Gulf. They gesture at the map, upon which "the point where military boats were captured" is hand-written in red pen. The uniformed men give their names as Royal Marine Captain Chris Air and Lieutenant Felix Carman.
The Foreign Office last night said using the footage was "unacceptable". It has already expressed "grave concerns" about the conditions under which Leading seaman Faye Turney was persuaded to admit on film that the 15-strong naval patrol had strayed into Iranian territory last Friday.
In the latest video, Lt Carman stands in front of the map. He explains the type of boats used and gestures to the area where they were captured. "Yes, I would like to say to the Iranian people, 'I can understand why you are so angry about our intrusion into your waters'," he says.
Capt Air describes the team as seven Marines and eight Royal Navy personnel. "So far we have been treated very well by all the people here. They have looked after us and made sure we are given enough food and treated very well by them, so I thank them for that."
Earlier, Britain signalled it was ready to defuse the crisis by discussing operations in the Gulf with Tehran, and by stating the Royal Navy would never enter Iranian waters without seeking permission.
Diplomacy
The offer was described by senior Ministry of Defence officials as a "confidence-building" measure, but would not involve an apology, nor acceptance of the claim the patrol was in Iranian waters when captured by Revolutionary Guards on March 23. "We are anxious that this matter be resolved as quickly as possible, and that it be resolved by diplomatic means, and we are bending every single effort to that," the defence secretary, Des Browne, told BBC TV. "It's not my intention to go through the detail of that blow by blow, and it wouldn't be appropriate to do that, but we are in direct bilateral communication with the Iranians."
The bid comes at a time of hardening attitudes in Tehran, where hundreds yesterday abruptly ended a mood of public apathy towards the crisis by demonstrating outside the British embassy. Several, mostly volunteers and pro-government students, threw rocks and firecrackers, while riot police fired tear gas.
"If Britain had apologised initially it would have solved everything," said Saeed Abutaleb, a fundamentalist MP. "But now the matter has dragged on so long I don't think the Iranian government and nation will be satisfied with an apology, and [the sailors] might be put on trial.
"Britain should pay attention to what happened to the American hostages, who were kept until Iran had achieved what it wanted," he told the Guardian. "We have the experience of that [1979] embassy siege, and we are ready for it again."
The British initiative follows a diplomatic note from Tehran on Friday which was unusual in not demanding an apology for any alleged incursion, instead seeking a guarantee against future infringements. The Foreign Office replied the same day via the embassy in Tehran.
Defence sources said yesterday there was "no question of negotiations" for the crew's release. Britain would instead simply explain how it conducts its naval operations in the region. The sources also played down newspaper reports on Sunday that a senior naval officer would fly to Tehran to explain the British position.
The "confidence-building" initiative would consist of an explanation to Tehran about the Royal Navy's mission in the northern Gulf and operating procedures when crew stop and board vessels suspected of smuggling weapons to insurgents or of planning attacks against Iraqi oil terminals, officials said. It would involve a discussion of the precautions taken to avoid straying into Iranian waters.
To resolve the crisis, Britain is receiving help from Syria, among other Arab states, the Guardian has learned. Though bilateral relations have been poor, diplomatic sources said Damascus appears to be trying to help. It is one of the closest to Iran, with which it has a defensive pact.
The Qatari government is also seeking to play a mediating role, and British diplomats have claimed to be delighted with the level of support they won at the Arab League meeting in Riyadh last week.
Innocent
Although Britain has asked the US to keep a low profile in the standoff, George Bush on Saturday accused Iran of "inexcusable behaviour", though, in keeping with his promise, he did not raise the issue but was asked about it at the end of a press conference at his Camp David retreat.
The president signalled there would be no swap for the six Iranians arrested in Iraq in January. He said he supported Tony Blair "when he made it clear there were no quid pro quos. The Iranians must give back the hostages. They're innocent, they were doing nothing, and they were summarily plucked out of water."
The EU has threatened "appropriate measures" if the 15 are not released.
Reaction
With Iran on its new year holiday, reaction to the crisis was muted until yesterday's demonstrations. Even then, opinion on the streets was divided:
Maryam Ghazisaedy, 22, student
"I don't blame the 15 sailors but I blame the British government for entering our waters, not accepting Iran's legitimate rights and for asking things they have no right to demand"
Ali Razavi, 52
"The British are in Iraq illegally so they had no right to be in the Shatt al-Arab waterway"
Maryam Ebrahimi, 34, importer
"If they came into Iran's waters accidentally I would like them to be released because who knows, this could be used as an excuse to attack Iran"
Hamid, 34, businessman
"They should be released. The Iranian government is misusing it to deflect attention from other problems"