Iran releases photos of detained US sailors
Iran has released images of the U.S. sailors taken by the Iranian military hours before President Obama’s State of the Union address.
The images include the moment that Iranian authorities took custody of the two U.S. Navy boats, and show kneeling Americans with their hands on the back of their heads.
{mosads}The photos, published by IRIB News, show a U.S. Navy uniform, machine guns laid out for inspection and images apparently taken from inside the boats.
U.S. officials scrambled to respond to Tuesday’s incident, and a senior Obama administration official had told CNN that there is now indication it was a hostile act by Iran.
Iran said early Wednesday that it had released 10 Americans who spent the night in Iran after they were taken into custody “for crossing into Iranian territorial waters.”
Secretary of State John Kerry thanked Iranian authorities for “their cooperation in swiftly resolving this matter” after the sailors’ release, emphasizing “the critical role” of diplomacy.
Iranian media also published images of the sailors sitting together in a room on rugs while in custody.
“All indications suggest or tell us that our sailors were well taken care of, provided with blankets and food, and assisted with their return to the fleet earlier today,” Kerry said during a speech in Washington moments after the photos were released.
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