Iran Confirms Arrest of 3 US Tourists
By VOA News
01 August 2009
Iran's state-owned television, al-Alam, reports Saturday that authorities have arrested three American tourists who illegally entered the country through Iraq's northern border.
Authorities in Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region say the three tourists were on a hiking trip near the border when they apparently crossed into Iran on Friday.
Kurdish security officials say the hikers contacted another member of their travel group to say they were confronted by soldiers after entering Iranian territory.
The Americans arrived in the Iraqi Kurdish capital of Irbil earlier in the week, and were staying at Ahmed Awa, a mountain resort near the border with Iran. Kurdish officials say they had been warned that the Iranian border was very close.
A spokesman for the U.S. State Department, Robert Wood, said Saturday the U.S. is working to confirm the reports and, if they are found to be true, will ask Iranian authorities for consular access to the American detainees.
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