TEHRAN – A U.S. Navy officer has been stripped of his command over the capture by Iran of 10 American sailors who wandered into its territorial waters, Reuters reported.

In a statement on Thursday the U.S. Navy announced it had lost confidence in Commander Eric Rasch, who was the executive officer of the squadron that included the 10 sailors at the time of the January incident. He was responsible for the training and readiness of the more than 400 sailors in the unit.

SP/PA