What should the UK Government do if the Iranians execute our Soldiers

[Common as Mook]

and then we should send all the Iranians in this country back based on tenuous terrorist links.

Shit, I'd better tell my mates Dad who's lived here for forty years that he might be sent 'home' soon

 

[Easy 10]

Those Iranian ****s need to back the f*** off. What if the UK siezed a dozen of their mob whilst fishing off the Isle of Wight, and started parading them on BBC news every night coercing them into saying "our Government should stop our program of enriching uranium to make nuclear weapons" - the abduls would be in front of the Embassy in London slapping their heads around for all they're worth.

Let them go, you f***ing nutters.

 

[junior]

As an ex LS (R) who has seved alongside many a Marine boarding party in the early 90's why they didnt open fire!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!f*** the UN mandate, that's been proved a load of old bollax

My first thought's,and im still wondering that now.I do not know the level of weapons training sailors get,and i dont know what they're tactics would be like in a fire fight (marines would be ok but how many of them were there?).

Regardless of superior weapons/numbers etc i can tell you that i/my unit would not have gone down without a fight.I would rather die fighting,than risk capture by an un-friendly middle easten country.

They even showed pictures on the telly of the navy people after they'd been captured,and they still had their personal weapons with them.STRANGE,VERY STRANGE.

 

[junior]

My first thought's,and im still wondering that now.I do not know the level of weapons training sailors get,and i dont know what they're tactics would be like in a fire fight (marines would be ok but how many of them were there?).

Regardless of superior weapons/numbers etc i can tell you that i/my unit would not have gone down without a fight.I would rather die fighting,than risk capture by an un-friendly middle easten country.

They even showed pictures on the telly of the navy people after they'd been captured,and they still had their personal weapons with them.STRANGE,VERY STRANGE.

Having thought about that for ten mins whilst in the shower,like a few others have said it would have been suicide.15 sailors against 6 (i think) boats fitted with HMG's wouldnt have made good odds.Im sure i still would have fought though rather than be taken hostage.

 

[Brovion]

See above. SA80s and a 9mm against Fast Patrol Craft fitted with .50cal, AKs or Kalashnikovs (not sure of Rep Guard preference these days), plus RPGs.

The CO bears the weight of not sanctioning ship or helo opening fire, but is handcuffed by the ROE. Will be interesting to see the Report of Proceedings on this one.

Thanks. I too was wondering why they had just meekly surrendered seeing has how the American land forces in a similar situation (went to arrest a single 'decoy' Iranian soldier and found themselves ambushed) fought back. Probably better armed? I know that heroic, last-ditch stands when you're out-numbered and out-gunned are great in films but not so much fun in real life - but why were they so poorly equipped and supported?

 

[HampshireSeagulls]

Weapons training is not intensive, but all the sailors would have passed annual personal weapons training, and theoretically could have hit the side of a barn. However, there is not much in the way of room for "fight-move" tactics in a Pacific, so the "going down fighting" would have become simply "going down". The Fast Patrol Craft are rigid, and can be lightly armoured - the Pacific is not- it's little more than a fibre glass box with an inflatable lip. The 15 captured appear to be 8 RM and 7 RN with an RM Captain and a Lt that is undetermined (could be either), and best will in the world, I don't think a firefight in that situation would have been a course of action. The Officers would have made the call anyway.

As for the PWs still being retained, the Iranians managed to get the boats to run up Iranian flags, and considering the amount of firepower concentrated on the Pacifics, having a PW would not have made a blind bit of difference. I also strongly suspect that the PWs would have been emptied and all rounds would have been confiscated during the initial seizure.

 

[HampshireSeagulls]

Thanks. I too was wondering why they had just meekly surrendered seeing has how the American land forces in a similar situation (went to arrest a single 'decoy' Iranian soldier and found themselves ambushed) fought back. Probably better armed? I know that heroic, last-ditch stands when you're out-numbered and out-gunned are great in films but not so much fun in real life - but why were they so poorly equipped and supported?

Because they have never needed anything bigger in the armoury up to now, and also they have to get it all into and out of little boats in bouncy seas. Having a chuffing great Heavy Machine Gun strapped to your back whilst climbing up the side of a tanker is not conducive to a good mood!

You have to consider the options of how to fight back. In something the size of a large dining room table, which has no defensive capabilities at all, you are limited in your options (which would be, basically, dying.)

Not sure why the helo and ship didn't intervene more though.

 

[HampshireSeagulls]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/6516315.stm

Can you spot the difference when it's a journo that's been kidnapped?

Where are the "meeja" signatories and the full page adverts in the Grauniad for the sailors and marines? Not quite "luvvy" enough, perhaps?

Perhaps, as the BBC West Midlands cock would say, he kind of deserves what he gets, he put himself there in the first place.....

 

[1066gull]

I am getting really pissed off with Israel and Iran at the moment. I don't want to sound racist or anything, but I hope they bloody shut the f*** up.

 

[Scoffers]

The Iranian officials are clearly just trying to stir up anti-uk feeling. Once they have squeezed all the publicity they can out of it, I'd expect them to let the sailors go.

 

[Hampden Park]

Weapons training is not intensive, but all the sailors would have passed annual personal weapons training, and theoretically could have hit the side of a barn.

theoretically being the operatiive word Hampshire. apart from the 'Gunners' onboard, not many matelots could hit themselves with a loaded weapon. biggest mistake IMHO was to arm matelots outside of the 'Gunners' branch. (with the odd exception of your good self of course )

 

[Bevendean Hillbilly]

If they had fought back they would all have been killed and we would be in a much, much worse situation.
I thought that the latest guidance to Military captives is to just say whatever their captors want and get out, it's not like anyone seriously believes the rag heads claims about who was in the wrong here.

PersonallyI would be very contrite if I was them, they had a woman on board, and they were in a rubber dinghy and faced with six heavily tooled up patrol boats.

 

[1066gull]

The Iranian officials are clearly just trying to stir up anti-uk feeling.

What about anti-Iran feeling?

 

[HampshireSeagulls]

If they had fought back they would all have been killed and we would be in a much, much worse situation.
I thought that the latest guidance to Military captives is to just say whatever their captors want and get out, it's not like anyone seriously believes the rag heads claims about who was in the wrong here.

PersonallyI would be very contrite if I was them, they had a woman on board, and they were in a rubber dinghy and faced with six heavily tooled up patrol boats.

Oooh. The "woman on board" question. Will be interesting to see the Lords of the MOD try and prove that having front-line women is not detrimental to unit cohesion here! She may be very good at her job, but I guarantee that having a female in amongst the hostages has led to some puckering sphincters in the corridors of Whitehall.

 

[HampshireSeagulls]

What about anti-Iran feeling?

Adrie - politics 101.

It is highly unlikely that the Iranians are trying to stir up anti-Iran feelings.

 

[Bevendean Hillbilly]

Oooh. The "woman on board" question. Will be interesting to see the Lords of the MOD try and prove that having front-line women is not detrimental to unit cohesion here! She may be very good at her job, but I guarantee that having a female in amongst the hostages has led to some puckering sphincters in the corridors of Whitehall.

The "woman on board" issue is probably the most important sub argument here, I do not have a problem with women being in the services, but the consequences for women when captured by men who think Western women are little more than whores at the best of times, do not bear thinking about

 

[Lammy]

HIGHLY unlikely that we would ever embark on a full scale invasion a la Iraq.

Far more likely that the following would happen;

1) UN sanctioned trading embargo. War ships preventing anything coming or going.

2) Possible 'precision' air strikes of all nuclear facilities. Isreal will be only too happy to oblige.

You have to ask what the point would be though. It's not like they are going to save the hostages once they have already been killed. It is also unlikely that they will admit regime change as the motive.

Basically I think it will come down to tighter sanctions. If I were Iran though I'd be feeling pretty nervous. Geographically they're a sitting duck. We're in Iraq and Arganistan. We have bases in Saudi, Turkey and Kuwait.

There will be hundreds of suicide bombers going off all over the place. Transport will grind to a halt on a daily basis.

Basically we're all doomed!

 

[Napper]

if they execute then we need to get USA properly on side and bomb the living f*** out of them

 

[Pavilionaire]

My take is that Iran is simply flexing its muscles in the Middle East.

As I see it, they've pretty much made all of political capital they can out of it, and any more fannying around will be counter-productive for them.

 

[paulsmithscarf]

Isn't this what Dinner Jacket wants, a reason to go to war with the USA and its allies, hate to say it but I think the nutter could do it, what would happen apart from World War 3, worrying times , again

It wont happen.