London, Dec 2 (DPA) Iran has released five British yachtsmen detained a week ago after apparently straying into Iranian waters, the Foreign Office in London said Wednesday.
The men were arrested Nov 25 after their racing yacht was stopped by the Iranian navy en route from Bahrain to Dubai.
But the news of the capture was only released by the British government late Monday. It said the men might have strayed “inadvertently” into Iranian waters.
Foreign Secretary David Miliband insisted that their capture had nothing to do with politics or the international tension over Iran’s nuclear programme.
Their release follows intense diplomatic efforts. Interrogations had shown that the vessel mistakenly entered Iranian waters and therefore the release of the Britons was ordered.
