Teheran hails UK 'shift' in sailor row

Iranian television said yesterday it had detected a shift in British policy that could help to resolve a crisis over 15 sailors and marines Iran is holding.

The television channel showed new footage yesterday of the 14 men and a woman, saying they had all admitted to entering Iran illegally when captured in the northern Gulf on March 23.

Talk of a shift in Britain's approach, so far heavily criticised by Iran, marks a softening in Teheran's tone in a crisis that has heightened tensions surrounding Iran's nuclear standoff with the West and pushed up oil prices.