Analysis: Pawns in a deadly game of high stakes

The ambush and capture of 15 British servicemen by Iranian Revolutionary Guards yesterday turned a tense situation in the Gulf into an explosive one.

In the past weeks, America and Britain have been increasing the pressure on the regime of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian President, in an attempt to curb his nuclear ambitions and to blunt Iran’s interference in neighbouring Iraq.

The Iranians have remained typically defiant throughout this campaign. Now they may be tempted to use the British sailors and Marines in their custody as bargaining chips against their Western detractors.

The stakes for all concerned could not be higher.

Read the rest at the Times of London