Detained American Sailors In Iran Released

In a statement broadcast on state television, the IRGC said the ten American sailors who were detained by Iran had been freed.

The Pentagon said they lost contact with the patrol boats as they moved through the Gulf between Kuwait and Bahrain on Tuesday.

The American vessels strayed into Iranian waters have been reportedly released.

The nine men and one woman were interrogated while being held on Farsi Island in the Gulf, where the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) have a base.

There were reports at least one of the US vessels drifted after developing mechanical problems.

There were conflicting messages from the Iranians, who initially accused the sailors of snooping, before appearing to back down.

General Ali Fadavi, Navy chief of Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard, confirmed a "broken" navigation system caused the boats to stray into Iranian waters, adding the issue was being "resolved".

He said investigations had found "this trespassing was not hostile or for spying purposes".

However, earlier, he said Tehran had asked Washington for an apology for "violating" Iran's territorial waters.

He said a US aircraft carrier in the Gulf had acted "provocatively and unprofessionally" for 40 minutes by carrying out air and sea manoeuvres after Iran arrested the American sailors.