Iranian/British Standoff

Barganing Chip - that's the first thought that came to mind when I was reading about how the Iranians captured 15 British saliors/marines for allegedly crossing over into Iranian territorial waters. Something that I've found helpful was a timeline of events provided by bbc.com on the issue (which I find to be one of the best sources of international news). The timeline also has a map that is quite helpful in determining what happened where. Another good source in this matter is an Iranian viewpoint by the editor of an independent Tehran-based newspaper here. While this viewpoint is not as indepth on the matter as some may have liked, it gives a little more insight on where Iran and its various political factions may be comming from.

A picture from the timeline of events is presented here (image copyright of bbc.com).

1. Crew boards merchant ship 1.7NM inside Iraqi waters
2. HMS Cornwall was south-east of this, and inside Iraqi waters
3. Iran tells UK that merchant ship was at a different point, still within Iraqi waters
4. After UK points this out, Iran provides corrected position, now within Iranian waters
   

Given this play of events, I'm much more inclined to believe the British side of the story. Makes you wonder though exactly what they were thinking. Perhaps they saw it as an opportunity to gain a bargaining chip and to show off their 'might' at the same time? I destest it when people's lives are put at risk for political games, though unfortunately this happens all the time. I'd provide more commentary, but I think instead of jumping the gun, I'll wait a few more days to see how this situation plays out.