About 10 U.S. Sailors Are Being Held By Iran

Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said that the US military, after contact with Iran, had received assurances that the American crew and the boats would be “returned promptly”.

Earlier Tuesday, the Pentagon said it had lost contact with two vessels in the waters between Kuwait and Bahrain.

Ten U.S. Navy sailors were detained on Tuesday by Iranian Revolutionary Guard forces when one of their boats apparently became disabled in the Persian Gulf. He said the American craft and their crew were taken during the incident to Farsi Island, an Iranian island in the Persian Gulf where Iran maintains a naval base.

According to another senior defence official, the U.S. navy boats were sailing near the Farsi Island looking to refuel; however, it is not clear whether they had refuelled.

The Iranians have assured the US that the sailors are safe, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said on CNN.

In June 2004, Iran arrested six British Royal Marines and two naval personnel – part of a U.S.-led force in Iraq – for straying into its waters, stirring diplomatic tensions between the two. Ben Rhodes, a senior aide to President Barack Obama, indicated the situation was still fluid.

Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency said that the boats had illegally traveled more than a mile into Iranian territorial waters before being intercepted. Tom Cotton (R – AR) claiming the boats were seized because of the nuclear deal with Iran.

A US official told ABC News it’s the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy holding the Americans, adding that the communications with the Iranians have been “very professional”.

The situation in the Persian Gulf comes just hours before President Obama is set to deliver the State of the Union Address.

The news came less than a month after USA officials accused Iran of conducting a “highly provocative” rocket test near US boats passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., said on MSNBC that the conflict would be resolved soon through diplomacy between USA and Iranian officials. Following negotiations the eight were freed three days later. Iran denied the vessel had done so.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush tweeted: “If our sailors aren’t coming home yet, they need to be now”.