Posted on 03/31/2007 2:49:00 PM PDT by UKrepublican
Sailor Seizure 'Inexcusable' Updated: 22:33, Saturday March 31, 2007
Iran's seizure of 15 Royal Navy personnel has been described as "inexcusable behaviour" by US President George Bush.
In his first comments on the crisis, Mr Bush said he supported Britain's diplomatic efforts to get the captives back.
He said: "Iran must give back the hostages. They're innocent, they did nothing wrong, and they were summarily plucked out of water."
(Excerpt) Read more at news.sky.com ...
Great post.
Regardless of the myths espoused on here by people who have never been to Britain, never mind understand it, the media and politicians are behind the Government to get these sailors back.
To that extent there has been no real criticism by the politicians or military men - as a way of showing unity.
However, I can assure you when this is over there will be a major fallout as to why this has been allowed. None of this has happened because of cowardice, but big mistakes have been made somewhere and someone will pay.
This won't happen again without a fight.
Amazing that one cannot tell satire from fact where the dims are concerned. :D)
Oh, puhleeeeze. No one to hit? How about Hezbollah, which carried out the bombing. Hezbollah is and always has been an Iranian front group.
Before you fire off an ignorant snap post, know your history:
From President Ronald Reagan's October 27, 1983 speech to the nation about the Marine barracks bombing:
We have strong circumstantial evidence that the attack on the Marines was directed by terrorists who used the same method to destroy our Embassy in Beirut. Those who directed this atrocity must be dealt justice, and they will be. The obvious purpose behind the sniping and, now, this attack was to weaken American will and force the withdrawal of U.S. and French forces from Lebanon. The clear intent of the terrorists was to eliminate our support of the Lebanese Government and to destroy the ability of the Lebanese people to determine their own destiny.April 18, 1983, Bombing of U.S. Embassy in Beirut:
A suicide bomber in a pickup truck loaded with explosives rammed into the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon. Sixty-three people were killed, including 17 Americans, eight of whom were employees of the Central Intelligence Agency, including chief Middle East analyst Robert C. Ames and station chief Kenneth Haas.
Reagan administration officials said that the attack was carried out by Hezbollah operatives, a Lebanese militant Islamic group whose anti-U.S. sentiments were sparked in part by the revolution in Iran. The Hezbollah operatives who carried out the attack on the embassy reportedly were receiving financial and logistical support from both Iran and Syria.
The U.S. government took no military action in response to the embassy bombing, although, according to retired Marine Lt. Col. Bill Cowan, a covert military team entered Beirut in order to gather intelligence in preparation for retaliatory strikes.
Oct. 23, 1983 Bombing of Marine barracks in Beirut:
A suicide bomber detonated a truck full of explosives at a U.S. Marine barracks located at Beirut International Airport; 241 U.S. Marines were killed and more than 100 others wounded. They were part of a contingent of 1,800 Marines that had been sent to Lebanon as part of a multinational force to help separate the warring Lebanese factions.
The president assembled his national security team to devise a plan of military action. The planned target was the Sheik Abdullah barracks in Baalbek, Lebanon, which housed Iranian Revolutionary Guards believed to be training Hezbollah fighters. Defense Secretary Caspar Weinberger aborted the mission, reportedly because of his concerns that it would harm U.S. relations with other Arab nations. Instead, President Reagan ordered the battleship USS New Jersey, stationed off the coast of Lebanon, to hit the hills near Beirut. The move was seen as largely ineffective.
Four months after the Marine barracks bombing, U.S. Marines were ordered to start pulling out of Lebanon.
Link to information on terrorist attacks in th e 1980's. There's plenty more information from reliable sources on the internet about the Marine barracks bombing and our shameful retreat from Lebanon without taking any action. TO THIS DAY, THE DEATHS OF THOSE MARINES REMAIN UNANSWERED AND UNAVENGED.
President Bush said that he was sorry that the Chinese pilot who had buzzed our plane had been killed. And yes, it is a distinction with a difference.
Our Lefty pols and pundits wanted the president to grovel. China, with a U.S. balance of trade in her favor, though hoping to test the new president, was not quite as rabid.
The English sailors and marines kidnapped and held hostage were searching Iranian vessels for contraband. They followed orders. To suggest that they are in any way at fault clouds the issue.
Iran has violated the law of the seas; her actions are acts of war. The lawless primitives who are in charge in Iran want a confrontation with the West.
I don't agree that they would not dare go after US troops because they are afraid of our might. They have already done the hostage thing with our citizens during Jimmy Carter's ruinous presidency and they would do it again because they know that we are more hated in the West than they are, and that perhaps half of our people would like to see this country diminished if not destroyed.
Your turn, now, England -- our turn, again, not much later.
Good post, but just one thing.
The Sailors are all British, but not all are English. Just a little bugbear of mine! :)
Why were Iranian navy vessels armed with machine guns in Iraqi waters not confronted before the incident? I don't want your folks hurt but IMHO you will not get them back following the course of action Britain is on now.
"Was Pres Bush grovelling to China when he said he was "very sorry" to China even though they took US aircrew as hostages for 13 days?"
Yes, he was grovelling.
If not the command need reprimands and the rules of engagement need some change.
Nice post, well thought out.
IMHO the persians will not get what is coming to them until they start throwing nukes around. They and their allies kill our soldiers daily, attack allies at our side with impunity, murder men women and children with impunity, and daily agitate for the destruction of our civilization and the enslavement of our people. We did not appropriately respond to this activity before those good folks were captured and IMHO we will not do so after they are released.
As a poor ignorant commenter, I think world history has clearly shown where this situation is headed as the appeasers are in charge now and will probably remain so until all hell breaks and the situation is desperate. In the end your response to persian aggression, and I agree it is what we should do, is really wishful thinking.
Nuc1
Next time sink any Iranian vessel that gats closer than 100 yards. Apologize later at leisure about "the unfortunate incident."
Rubbish. I'll admit, though, that it grieves us sorely to see the U.K. beaten down by that sand monkey.
Don't get them started on the whole "English v. British" thing, we will be here all night lol. Speaking of which, if you are in the UK like myself, you do know it's 2:33 in the morning? Lots of coffee?
"Thank you Mr President... but next time, use a line from the Gipper. "The bombing begins in 5 minutes"
[Just wondering: Was that before or after he withdrew our troops from Lebanon?]
And they don't even seem that spirited.
Can you say "Saddam rallies"?
Don't say that. PRes. Reagan recieved bad advice on how to deal with Lebanon and took it. Colin Powell reccommended non retaliation. Too bad he followed.
But he did thump Khomenei good, though.
Neither Pres. Reagan nor Pres. Bush would wimp out. It's just not in their character.
"Why do you keep saying they had only pistols, this is not true they also had SA-80 rifles. They should NEVER have been taken so easily in the first place. The Captain of HMS Cornwall should be court marshalled."
Again, they were on an INFLATABLE BOAT, they were massively OUTNUMBERED and comapred to the Iranians massively underarmed. Any notion they could have fought back without immediate death is probably the most absurd suggestion an arm chair admiral could ever make.
"The Captain of HMS Cornwall should be court marshalled."
What nonsense, clearly you have been taken in by the extaordinary shambles of your media which is so light on the facts, they have ignored the fact the guy has been cleared by even the biggest hawks of any wrongdoing.
You make some good points, especially with regard a future iranian attack but I must correct you on one thing:
"the fact remains iran abducted some british sailors because the UK ROE don't permit defending themselves in a bloody war zone"
That is not the case, they are allowed to do whatever is required to defend themselves, but they must be realistic and faced with this paticular
scenario, how anyone can argue they did the right thing by handing themselves over is beyond comprehension.
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