Seized sailors 'in disputed waters'

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An internal Ministry of Defence briefing shows that the crew had not been in Iraqi waters as Defence Secretary Des Browne insisted, according to The Times.

The report, released under the Freedom of Information Act, apparently says that the US-led coalition had decided a territorial dividing line without informing Iran.

The Navy personnel were then said to have been approached by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards after straying beyond the Iraqi waters.

Their seizure caused a major diplomatic incident last spring as Britain demanded their release and Iran paraded them on television.

They were held for 13 days following a routine boarding operation in the Gulf off Iraq, only to be released in a fanfare of publicity by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

The newly-released document is a memo to Air Chief Marshal Sir Jock Stirrup on April 13, 2007 - after the hostages had been debriefed upon their return to Britain.

It also suggests the Britons were the first to raise their weapons as the Iranians approached.

The incident has been described as a "national embarrassment" by the cross-party Commons defence committee.