Britons set to leave Iran on London flight

Tehran, Apr 5: The 15 British military personnel held by Iran will leave Tehran at 1000 IST today on a flight to London, an airline official said.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said yesterday he would forgive and free the 15 despite Britain's failure to acknowledge they had strayed into Iranian territory.

Asked whether the 15 would be on the 0430 GMT flight, the British Mediterranean Airways official said: ''Yes, all of them.'' The official, who asked not to be named, said the 15 would be travelling in the business class section of the plane.

Ahmadinejad told a news conference broadcast round the world that Britain was not ''brave enough'' to admit it had made a mistake in the standoff, which began when Tehran seized the 15 in the Shatt al-Arab waterway between Iraq and Iran on March 23.

The two-week standoff between Britain and Iran had raised international tensions and rattled world financial markets, but Ahmadinejad's announcement prompted a drop in oil prices from recent highs. US stock futures and the dollar rose in relief.

''Under the influence of the Muslim Prophet, (Iran) forgives these 15 people and gives their freedom to the British people as a gift,'' Ahmadinejad told the news conference.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair welcomed the release of the 15 and said Britain bore the Iranian people no ill will.

Reuters

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