The US Navy has demoted the commander of 10 US sailors who in January entered Iranian territorial waters and were briefly detained. In a statement, the US Navy said it had lost confidence in Eric Rasch, who was in charge of a riverine squadron at the time of the incident in the Gulf. A Navy official said Cmdr Rasch had been re-assigned. The sailors were released after intense diplomacy between US Secretary of State John Kerry and top Iranian officials. On Thursday, the US Navy official said that Cmdr Rasch had failed to provide effective leadership, leading to a lack of oversight, complacency and failure to maintain standards in his unit.
US naval commander demoted after Iran’s capture of sailors
