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<p>Last week, the Navy released the results of a lengthy investigation it had completed, concerning the conduct of one officer and nine enlisted sailors after they willingly surrendered their two Riverine Patrol Craft to the Iranians and were subsequently detained for 15 hours in the Persian Gulf last January.</p>

Weak leadership, poor judgment, a lack of "warfighting toughness" and a litany of errors led to the embarrassing capture and detention by Iran of 10 U.S. sailors in the Persian Gulf in January, according to a Navy investigation released Thursday. Six officers and three enlisted sailors have been disciplined or face disciplinary action. The trouble began even before the sailors left port in Kuwait aboard two 50-foot boats on a short-notice, 300-mile journey to Bahrain. They were delayed, unprepared, poorly supervised and ill-suited for the mission, the report said. At least one sailor had been up all night with boat...

The commander in charge of the naval vessels that strayed into Iranian waters and were captured last January surrendered his command because he thought his sailors would be safe because Iran "wanted the nuclear deal to go through." This is only one of several revelations found in the 170-page report issued by the Pentagon about the incident. The commander's name was redacted from the report. Washington Times: In an interview with investigators looking into the January incident, the commander said he surrendered the vessels after calculating that his sailors would not be in danger because Iran “wants this nuke deal...

The U.S. Navy is weighing whether to punish several officers and sailors for the botched mission that resulted in two boats inadvertently straying into Iranian waters, embarrassing Washington and handing Tehran a propaganda victory, Foreign Policy has learned.

<p>The commodore in charge of the two U.S. Navy boats that strayed into Iranian waters leading to the capture of his 10 sailors for 16 hours in January will be relieved of command likely putting an end to his career, Fox News has learned.</p>

One day after Iran released 10 sailors they abducted in Iranian territorial waters, the administration released $1.7 billion in taxpayer dollars to Iran, part of a settlement of an old Iranian legal claim and came from a special fund the executive department can tap to pay claims against the US. Or was it ransom paid for the kidnapped sailors? The administration insists timing of the released funds is coincidental. But legislation introduced in Congress would compel the administration to detail whether it paid Iran a $1.7 billion for the hostage release. Lawmakers suspected taxpayer money was used to secure the...

Rep. Randy Forbes (R-Va.)'s revelation of the degree to which Iran abused our men and women in uniform after they pirated two U.S. Navy boats earlier this year underscores Barack Obama's, Joe Biden's, and John Kerry's willful dereliction of the duties of their offices.

In January, two US Navy high speed Riverine boats were apparently underway from Bahrain to Kuwait when they strayed into Iranian waters, while attempting to contact a vessel to refuel. The Pentagon first said that they had engine trouble. Yet, if that was the case, why didn’t the other boat tow the boat with mechanical problems to international waters and safety? Then, the Pentagon said that they had navigational issues. How is this possible in 2016, with each boat having an array of GPS and radar equipment? Even if one boat’s systems completely shut down, couldn’t they rely on the...

A member of the House Armed Services Committee says America has only gotten part of the story on Iran's kidnapping of a group of U.S. sailors earlier this year. Ten U.S. Navy sailors were taken into custody by the Islamic Republic on January 12, 2016, after the group strayed into Iranian waters off Farsi Island in the Persian Gulf. The group were held by the Iranians for 15 hours and subsequently released. In a move to embarrass the sailors, the Iranian government also released videos showing the men and one woman being taken into custody. Another video shows one of...

“I’ve had a full classified briefing” from military officials, Forbes told the Free Beacon. “It could be as long as a year before we actually get that released.” Details of the abduction are likely to start an uproar in the nation and call into question the Obama administration’s handling of the incident, which many experts say violated international and maritime law. “I think that when the details actually come out, most Americans are going to be kind of taken aback by the entire incident, both how Iran handled it and how we handled it,” Forbes disclosed. “I think that’s going...

Accountability matters, especially in the military — and the US Navy just delivered some internal accountability for the capture of sailors by Iran. NBC, ABC, and other news agencies report that the Navy has “fired” Commander Eric Rasch, the executive officer of the sailors in the embarrassing January incident. This reverses the promotion Rasch got while the investigation took place, and will end any hopes he has for promotion: The Navy has fired the commander of the 10 American sailors who entered Iranian territorial waters in the Persian Gulf and were captured and held by Iran for about 15 hours.In...

The commanding officer of a West Coast-based Navy riverine squadron has been fired in the fallout from an investigation into an incident in which ten sailors were briefly captured by Iranian forces earlier this year. Cmdr. Eric Rasch, commanding officer of Coastal Riverine Squadron 3, was relieved today by Capt. Gary Leigh the commander of Coastal Riverine Group 1 due to a “loss of confidence in his ability to command,” according to a Navy release. Leigh made the decision to remove Rasch after reviewing a preliminary investigation into the incident that unfolded over Jan. 12-13. Two riverine boats carrying ten...

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Navy has fired the commander of the 10 American sailors who wandered into Iranian territorial waters in the Persian Gulf and were captured and held by Iran for about 15 hours. In a statement Thursday, the Navy said it had lost confidence in Cmdr. Eric Rasch, who was the executive officer of the squadron that included the 10 sailors at the time of the January incident. He was responsible for the training and readiness of the more than 400 sailors in the unit. A Navy official said Rasch failed to provide effective leadership, leading to a...

BREAKING: Defense Secretary Slips Up, Reveals Obama Admin LED IRAN Straight to Our Sailors First came the fact that President Barack Obama refused to address the arrest of 10 of our sailors by the Iranian military after their boats had mechanical trouble at sea. Then came news that the Obama administration had offered the Iranians an apology for the release of the sailors. Now comes the disturbing revelation, apparently delivered by Defense Secretary Ashton Carter, that the Obama administration tipped off the Iranians that our soldiers were lost at sea and requested their aid. The news came from Rep. Louie...

By Wallace Bruschweiler and William Palumbo Since Tuesday's capture of U.S. Navy sailors by the Iranians, many questions have emerged that call into question the official story of events. Knowing the history of the Obama administration, including the Arab Spring and the infamous attack and cover-up Benghazi "incident," is it fair to assume that the White House is again deceiving the American public? In light of yet another disgraceful situation that humiliated our country and military, below are some vital and important questions to ponder (forget political correctness!): *Was this event coordinated to coincide with Obama's final State of the...

See also: The most plausible explanation for the 10 riverine sailors captured by Iran A fascinating comment on Rick Moran’s blog about the Iranian capture of our sailors is making waves in the blogosphere and on Facebook.  It makes a lot more sense than any of the official explanations we have received for the capture and subsequent release of the sailors. Thomas Lipscomb explains: Flash! A former Navy SEAL, Matt Bracken, just blew up what I have been calling "a pack of lies from the US and Iran" on what the hell happened that got our boats captured and taken to...

See also: Calling BS on the official story of the Iranian capture of two US riverine boats I have separately heard from two experts, both high ranking Marines, one on active duty and the other working in DC at a foundation, the following. 
 When I pressed them on the Fars News Service statement from Iran that the 10 captured on the two US vessels were all Marines, they countered: No, they are part of a Rivierine Squadron based in San Diego. Further they are support crews for SEAL missions from the US Navy and highly trained. The Iranians probably...

White House Spokesperson Josh Earnest News Briefing Video

A fascinating comment on Rick Moran's blog about the Iranian capture of our sailors is making waves in the blogosphere and on Facebook. It makes a lot more sense than any of the official explanations we have received for the capture and subsequent release of the sailors. Thomas Lipscomb explains: Flash! A former Navy SEAL, Matt Bracken, just blew up what I have been calling "a pack of lies from the US and Iran" on what the hell happened that got our boats captured and taken to the Farsi Islands. Read more: http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2016/01/calling_bs_on_the_official_story_of_the_iranian_capture_of_two_us_riverine_boats.html#ixzz3xQA8nIM0 Follow us: @AmericanThinker on Twitter | AmericanThinker...

The young Navy lieutenant who apologized to the Iranians after U.S. boats entered Iran’s territory has been identified as Lt. David Nartker. The 27-year-old grew up in Chicago and now lives in Ohio. Videos on his Facebook page show him firing weapons. Read: Iran Releases Humiliating Photos of Captured U.S. Sailors On Their Knees Nartker was among the 10 U.S. sailors who were captured by Iran earlier this week. The sailors were later released. But he found himself at the center of an international uproar after Iran released footage showing an interrogator haranguing him about being in Iranian waters. “It...