WASHINGTON – The Navy has fired the commander of the 10 American sailors who wandered into Iranian territorial waters in the Persian Gulf and were captured and held by Iran for about 15 hours.
A Navy official says the Navy lost confidence in Commander Eric Rasch, who was the executive officer of the squadron that included the 10 sailors at the time of the Iran incident. He was responsible for the training and readiness of the 400-plus sailors in the unit.
The official says Rasch failed to provide effective leadership, leading to a lack of oversight, complacency and failure to maintain standards in the unit. Rasch has been relieved of his command duties and reassigned.
The official was not authorized to discuss the details publicly so spoke on condition of anonymity.
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