Britain wants explanation over sailors' seizure

By Aref Mohammed

BASRA, Iraq (Reuters) - Efforts were underway on Saturday to try to resolve a diplomatic dispute between Britain and Iran triggered after Iranian forces seized 15 British sailors and marines off the coast of Iraq.

Britain said two boatloads of sailors and marines had searched a cargo ship in Iraqi waters on a U.N. approved mission when Iranian gunboats encircled and captured them on Friday.

No shots were fired and the British servicemen were unharmed, officials said.

Iran accused the British of illegally entering its waters.

The incident came as U.N. Security Council members were putting the final touches to a resolution imposing new sanctions on Iran over its refusal to halt sensitive nuclear work. A vote on the resolution could take place as early as Saturday.

Oil prices rose more than one percent to a three-month high on the news of the Britons' seizure.

Britain summoned Iran's ambassador in London and demanded the servicemen's immediate release.

"We sought a full explanation of what happened and left the Iranian authorities in no doubt that we expect immediate and safe return of our service personnel and boats," foreign minister Margaret Beckett said.

In Tehran, the foreign ministry summoned the British charge d'affaires.

"The Iranian Foreign Ministry has seriously objected following the illegal entry of British naval military forces into our country's waters," state television reported.

It said the Britons were detained by border guards for further investigation.

SIMILAR INCIDENT IN 2004

British officials were wary of drawing the conclusion that the incident was a deliberate provocation by Tehran, which denies Western accusations that its nuclear energy program is a front for developing atomic arms.

"This may well be a misunderstanding. We're certainly treating it as such at the moment. We're looking for the mistake to be corrected," a British government source said.

It mirrored a similar event in 2004 when Iran seized eight British servicemen in the narrow waterway that separates Iran from Iraq and held them for three nights.