Iran confirms to release UK female sailor

    TEHRAN, March 28 (Xinhua) -- Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini on Wednesday confirmed that Tehran would soon release the only female among the 15 captured British sailors and marines, the official IRNA news agency reported.

    The female sailor will be released and Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki has announced the release would occur Wednesday or Thursday, Hosseini was quoted as saying by IRNA.  Full story

Iranian TV airs video footage of detained British sailors

    TEHRAN, March 28 (Xinhua) -- Iran's state Al-Alam television on Wednesday broadcasted a video footage of the recently detained British sailors, including a servicewoman.

    The footage showed the British soldiers were eating and the only female sailor, Faye Turney, was wearing a white tunic with a black scarf.

    "We have trespassed. I'm leading sailman Faye Turney. I come from Britain and I have been in the navy for nine years," said Turney in the video, who was a mother of a three-year-old girl. Full story

    WASHINGTON, March 28 (Xinhua) -- The United States said on Wednesday it is not escalating tensions with Iran and insisted that the naval exercises in the Gulf has been long planned. Full story

Blair vows to "ratchet up" pressure on Iran

    LONDON, March 28 (Xinhua) -- British Prime Minister Tony Blair said Wednesday that it was time to "ratchet up" the diplomatic and international pressure on Iran to release the 15 British military personnel it seized last week. Full story

British FM says to freeze talks with IranIranian TV airs video footage of detained British sailors

    TEHRAN, March 28 (Xinhua) -- Iran's state Al-Alam television on Wednesday broadcasted a video footage of the recently detained British sailors, including a servicewoman. Full story

Iranian military officer: British sailors confess illegal entry of Iranian waters

    TEHRAN, March 24 (Xinhua) -- Iranian military officer General Alireza Afshar said on Saturday that the 15 British sailors who were detained by Iranian forces when they were patrolling off the Iraqi border Friday, have "confessed their mistakes of illegally entering Iranian waters", local Fars news agency reported. Full story