Blair said Britain had secured the sailors' release without any deal or negotiations
Fifteen British sailors and marines held captive for nearly two weeks in Iran landed early Thursday at London's Heathrow Airport, one day after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced he was releasing them.
Prime Minister Tony Blair welcomed the hostages' return but called for continued international pressure on Tehran after four servicemen were killed in an attack in Iraq earlier in the day. "Now it is far too early to say that the particular terrorist act that killed our forces was an act committed by terrorists that were backed by any elements of the Iranian regime, so I make no allegation in respect of that particular incident," Blair said.
Blair stated that there were was no connection between the release of Iranians held in Iraq and the release of the British crew, and that Britain had managed to secure the sailors' release without any deal or negotiations.
The British sailors and marines arrived at the Tehran airport in a convoy of black sedans about 7:30 a.m. local time, escorted by the elite Revolutionary Guards. They were then seated in business class on the British Airways flight that departed Mehrabad International Airport around 8:30 a.m. local time. Once airborne, they celebrated their freedom with champagne and laughter, according to a British reporter on board. Col. Andy Price of Royal Marines told reporters that once on board, the 15 were given fresh military uniforms for their arrival at Heathrow Airport,
Before boarding, they received gifts given to them on Ahmadinejad's behalf, including some handicrafts, a vase and special Persian sweets, Iran's state-run news agency reported.
O'Reilly: "Iran Won"
Already, some prominent conservative voices in the USA see the affair as a clear victory for Iran. "Iran won," said a disappointed Bill O'Reilly on Fox News. "It humiliated Great Britain and by extension the USA. Iran showed the world it could grab the sailors and marines, humiliate them and get away with it. Like Hitler and Tojo in 1930s," he said, "the Muslim fascists are making the calculation that the world is too apathetic and weak to rally against them."
"The next big story is to find out what kind of coercion the Iranians used to make some of the hostages spew Iranian propaganda," the conservative talk show host added. "Until massive death takes place the world will continue to make excuses for the fascists and blame the democracies."
The family members of the Israeli captives being held by Iranian proxies Hizbullah and Hamas sent letters of congratulation to the families of the former British captives. In Israeli websites that reported the release of the Britons, most of the talkbacks seemed to ask the same questions: "What about our captives? Why can't we even get a sign of life from them?"