The Guardian has some new details about the fifteen British sailors seized by Iran over the weekend:
the biggest problem Britain has is finding out who to talk to. The capture was carried out by Iranian Revolutionary Guards [IRG], rather than the Iranian navy. The Guards only answer to President Ahmedinajad, who was once one of their members. The British government is only allowed to communicate with the Foreign Ministry who have no power in the matter and can only carry messages.
In case you’re not familiar with some of the IRG’s previous accomplishments, check out Matthias Kuntzel’s engrossing TNR piece from a year ago. --Keelin McDonell