“This war differs from other wars, in this particular. We are not fighting armies but a hostile people, and must make old and young, rich and poor, feel the hard hand of war.”
-William Tecumseh Sherman
It is coming. The British government, under Blair, is doing everything possible including groveling in humiliation in front of the mullahs to rescue their countryman. It is a mistake. Doing so will confirm everything the Islamists belief about the West. Blair has foolishly determined that the goal is to rescue the hostages. It should not be. The goal should be that no one, specifically the Iranians, will dare take the risk of pulling such a stunt again. Blair is out of his league against such men as Mahmud Ahmadinejad. Sometime in the future another leader will have to undo the damage. I hope I am wrong. I fear I am not.
Anyone seen Maggie Thatcher?
The Telegraph is reporting:
Ministers seek deal with Iran for captives
By Sean Rayment, Tim Shipman and Patrick Hennessy, Sunday Telegraph
Last Updated: 2:28am BST 01/04/2007
Ministers are preparing a compromise deal to allow Iran to save face and release its 15 British military captives by promising that the Royal Navy will never knowingly enter Iranian waters without permission.Read the rest if you have the stomach
The Sunday Telegraph has learnt of plans to send a Royal Navy captain or commodore to Teheran, as a special envoy of the Government, to deliver a public assurance that officials hope will end the diplomatic standoff.
The move, which was discussed at a meeting of Whitehall's Cobra crisis committee yesterday, came as Downing Street officials explicitly cautioned against hopes of a speedy outcome and said that families of the hostages should prepare for the "long haul".
The Prime Minister, Tony Blair, and the Foreign Secretary, Margaret Beckett, have been warned that the impasse may develop into a long-term stand-off. Privately, officials are speculating that the crisis could continue for months.
The renewed search for a solution was given greater urgency when a senior Iranian official said that moves had begun to put the 15 British captives on trial.
Iran's ambassador to Moscow, Gholamreza Ansari, announced: "Legal moves to determine the guilt of the British sailors have been launched." In an interview with a Russian television channel, he said: "The legal process is going on and has to be completed and if they are found guilty they will face punishment."
