Ireland's ambassador to Iran will meet with the country's foreign ministry officials in Tehran tomorrow morning to discuss the capture of an Irishman whose yacht was reported to have strayed into Iranian waters.
David Bloomer, originally from Malahide, Co Dublin, was among five sailors on the Kingdom of Bahrainyacht when it was stopped by the Iranian navy while it sailed from Bahrain to Dubai last week.
The Department of Foreign Affairs said the British government would be leading negotiations, as Mr Bloomer was travelling on a British passport. It said it has been in contact with Mr Bloomer's family in Ireland to provide consular assistance.
The yacht was stopped by the Iranian navy on November 25th and the crew members were taken into custody, the British Foreign Office said in a statement. The sailors, who "may have strayed inadvertently into Iranian waters," remain in Iran and are safe and well, according to the statement.
British foreign secretary David Miliband said officials are in touch with Iranian authorities to "seek clarification and to try and resolve the matter swiftly."
Mr Bloomer, who is in his early 60s, has been living and working as a radio presenter in Bahrain since the 1980s.
He is also a qualified off-road driving instructor and has travelled through the Sahara, the Amazon in Venezuela, the Namib and Kalahari deserts, the Empty Quarter in Saudi, and Easter Island.
The incident comes as the US, Britain and other European allies condemn Iran's plan to expand its nuclear program in defiance of United Nations sanctions.
The boat belongs to Sail Bahrain, a project which aims to develop sailing and other water sports in the Persian Gulf nation.
Bloomberg