Tehran: Iran freed five British sailors detained last week when their racing yacht drifted accidentally into Iranian waters in the Arabian Gulf. Britain said it was delighted with Wednesday's release and praised Tehran's handling of the incident.

The 60-foot yacht was in the Gulf on its way from Bahrain to Dubai last Wednesday for the start of its first offshore race when it ran into a problem with its propeller, said Andrew Pindar, whose Team Pindar owns the yacht. It drifted into Iranian waters and was seized by the Revolutionary Guard's navy

"After carrying out an investigation and interrogation of the five British sailors, it became clear that their illegal entry was a mistake," the Revolutionary Guard said in a statement carried by the official IRNA news agency.

"After obtaining necessary guarantees, it was decided to release them."

Tensions

The British government had tried to keep the case from being politicised at a time when Tehran is under heavy pressure from the West over its nuclear programme. Iran has accused Britain and other foreign governments of stoking the country's postelection street protests.

The tensions with the West have also been heightened by Iran's detention of three Americans arrested this summer after they strayed across the border from northern Iraq. Washington and their families say the three unintentionally crossed into Iran while hiking, but Tehran recently accused them of espionage.

British Foreign Secretary David Miliband confirmed the release of the five Britons and said they were being towed in their boat to international waters. From there, they would be towed to Dubai.

"I welcome the fact this has been dealt with in a straightforward, professional way by the Iranian authorities," Miliband said.

"Obviously this has been a real ordeal for the young men and their families and I'm really delighted that it's over for them and that we can call the matter closed."

The five were intercepted near the Iranian island of Sirri, which lies near the mouth of the narrow Hormuz Strait off Dubai. It was not clear where the Britons were held during their week in custody.

Team Pindar is an independent British-based yachting team. It runs the yacht called Kingdom of Bahrain under the Sail Bahrain initiative in partnership with the kingdom of Bahrain.

London The parents of Luke Porter said they were "very, very relieved" that the 21-year-old's ordeal had come to an end. They had voiced concern that the five Britons could have been used as a "bargaining tool" by the Iranian government.

Speaking from his home in Somerset, his father, Charles, said he thought his son "will have dealt with the situation very well and held it together by being very strong".

"We're very, very relieved it appears to be over and that he is on his way home," he added.

"Our greatest fear was that they would be used as some sort of bargaining tool, and if that had happened, the whole situation would have become protracted. We were desperately trying to put all the worrying to the back of our minds and remain as positive as possible. There was very little we could do this end, and we just tried to stay strong and just get on with things."

Luke's mother, Beverley, said she and her husband were "so appreciative that so much has been done behind the scenes".