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Sailor 'reading from a script'
31/03/2007 10:17 - (SA)
London - Nathan Summers, a British sailor held captive in Iran, was reading from a script when he "apologised" for entering Iranian waters, his father said in an interview published on Saturday.
"That wasn't my son talking," Roy Summers, 50, told Britain's The Sun.
"Nathan's a man of very few words. He was obviously given a script. Nathan will have gone along with what they asked, just to keep the situation calm," the elder Summers said.
Iranian state television aired footage on Friday of Summers "confessing" that he and his 14 colleagues had illegally entered Iranian waters on March 23, and apologising for doing so.
"It is wrong to parade the captives on television. But I cannot tell you what a relief it is to see my boy alive and well," the elder Summers said.
Nathan's brother Nick, who is also in the British navy, had earlier urged him to "just hang in there" and also said it a relief to see him.
Nick told Sky News television that his brother appeared to be acting as he would normally and was not distressed.
When asked about the televised statement, he said Nathan would be "under a lot of stress" because of the situation.
Footage 'outrageous'
His girlfriend was also finding it difficult but was reassured after seeing the footage on the news, Nick said.
Speaking on Iranian state television, Summers identified himself by name and gave the date he was arrested.
The claim that the soldiers were arrested in Iranian waters has been rejected by the British government.
"We trespassed without permission," Summers said in his confession. "Since we have been arrested in Iran our treatment has been very friendly, they took care of us very well.
"I'm grateful that no harm has come to us, I would like to apologise for entering your waters without any permission."
Footage of the interview was interspersed with images of the sailor sitting with two of his captured colleagues, including the only woman sailor, smiling, and with bowls of fruit and flowers in front of them.
On Wednesday, the Iranian Arabic-language station had shown footage of the woman, Faye Turney, also saying that they had trespassed into Iranian waters.
Britain denounced the latest footage as "outrageous".
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