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| British sailors on their way home |  |  |  |
| World |
| Written by Chris Perver |
| Wednesday, 04 April 2007 17:00 |
| President Ahmadinejad announced to the world yesterday that he was releasing the fifteen British sailors that were captured by the Iranian coastguard last month. The sailors were captured by Iran while inspecting ships in Iraqi waters, and were held hostage for nearly two weeks in the capital Teheran. The British government and the EU's Javier Solana had urged the immediate and unconditional release of the British personnel, but Iran largely ignored those pleas. Yesterday President Ahmadinejad announced at a conference that he was releasing the service personnel as a "gift" to the British people, to commemorate the "passing of Christ" and the birth of Mohammed. The former US Ambassador to the UN had this to say about the whole situation, and I must say his thoughts agree with my own... Quote: "However, former US ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton said President Ahmadinejad was the clear winner and had been strengthened in his pursuit of nuclear weapons. "President Ahmadinejad comes out of this as a winner on two counts," he said. "He won by seizing British hostages and he won by unilaterally deciding to release them, having found out the answer to the question I think he was posing, which is - how strong a response will Britain make to this act of taking captive these 15 service members? "The reaction was - not much at all. I think Ahmadinejad is actually emboldened in his pursuit of nuclear weapons, and I think that means more trouble ahead for all of us." I listened to Prime Minister Tony Blair's briefing on the television last night, after the announcement of the sailors' release. I'm not a big fan of the Prime Minister, but on this occasion I thought he spoke well, in not giving any credence to the Iranian government on their release. Sadly I cannot say the same for the 15 British sailors, who had nothing but praise for Ahmadinejad. While I don't know how I would react if I were in the same situation, I don't believe it is right to thank a government for releasing captives that never should have been taken hostage in the first place. Especially a government that is bent on the destruction of Israel, is developing nuclear weapons and supports terrorism in the Middle East. Quote: "Before leaving, one of the 15, Lt Felix Carman, told Iranian television: "To the Iranian people, I can understand why you were insulted by our apparent intrusion into your waters. "I'd like to say that no harm was meant to Iranian people or its territories whatsoever, and that I hope that this experience will help to build the relationship between our countries." The only woman in the group, Leading Seaman Faye Turney, said: "Apologies for our actions, but many thanks for having it in your hearts to let us go free." Awww... That President Ahmadinejad sure is a charmer. It's possible the sailors were instructed by the British government not to make a big issue of this. Either that, or their response smacks of dhimmitude and cowardess. Unfortunately, as a Briton, I believe we may have brought all this on ourselves. The President of Iran mocked the UK for sending a "mother" on such a dangerous mission to the Gulf, and scored a political victory against us, presenting the release of the captives as a goodwill gesture to the "British people". And as long as Britain turns its back on God, we will continue to be humiliated by our enemies. How we need to be walking with God, if we are going to have any victory in our lives. Deuteronomy 1:42 Source BBC |
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