Father hits out over hostages cashing in

The MoD decision had sparked controversy among families of servicemen killed in warzones as well as among opposition MPs.

Last night, John Hyde, from Northallerton - whose son, Ben, was one of six Military Policemen killed by an Iraqi mob in 2003 - condemned the decision.

Mr Hyde said: "It is totally wrong for them to sell their story to the media. What happened was part and parcel of their job and I do not understand why they should be allowed, or why they would want, to sell their stories."

He was joined by Mike Aston, whose 30-year-old son, Corporal Russell Aston, was one of the Military Policemen killed in the same incident. Mr Aston said he was "absolutely amazed" by the MoD decision.

He said: "I think to actually sell (my) story would besmirch my son's memory. I really think this whole thing has been shameful and this just compounds it by going for the money."

Families of personnel killed in Iraq said it was shameful that the naval team taken prisoner by Iran in the Shatt Al-Arab Waterway and released 13 days later should profit by being paid to tell their story. Opposition politicians and former senior military personnel warned it would set a dangerous precedent.

Among those who stand to benefit is Leading Seaman Faye Turney - the only woman in the party - who has been the particular focus of media attention.

She was not among the six sailors and marines who appeared at a press conference on Friday at the Royal Marines Base at Chivenor, Devon, where they were reunited with their families on their return. However, it is reported that she has sold her story to ITV1's Tonight with Trevor McDonald and a newspaper for more than £100,000.

The former head of the Navy, Admiral Sir Alan West, said that he would not have allowed the personnel to sell their stories.

He said: "'It does leave a slightly tacky taste in one's mouth. It is not good. I do not believe that it will sit well with the rest of the Services and I do not think it will sit well with the country."

Colonel Bob Stewart, who commanded British troops in Bosnia, expressed dismay that the former hostages would be profiting while other military personnel were dying in Iraq.

Only last week, Catterick Garrison, in North Yorkshire, was in mourning after losing five soldiers.

Col Stewart said of the released hostages: "It makes me a bit sick.

"These people lived and many died, and they were relatively safe in Iran, whereas many people in Iraq are not safe."

Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague said the Conservatives would raise the issue in the Commons when Parliament returned after Easter.

He said: "Our Armed Forces are, I think, the most respected institutions in the country. But if, whenever people have been in a difficult situation, they are going to be allowed to sell their story quickly after that, then I think we are going to lose steadily that dignity and respect for our Armed Forces." Liberal Democrat leader Sir Menzies Campbell expressed concern at the possibility that sensitive information could leak, as well as the impact it would have on friendly nations that put pressure on Iran to release the group.

He said: "And there is, of course, the very understandable feeling of the families of those who have died in Iraq as to why it should be that those who have survived should - putting it bluntly - profit in this way."

The MoD said that the intense media interest meant the hostages' stories would have come out anyway through families and friends in a way that the military could not control.

A statement said: "Quite aside from the human interest story surrounding these individuals, there are also sensitive strategic issues in play.

"It was therefore decided to grant permission to speak to the media to those personnel that sought it, in order to ensure that the Navy and the MoD had sight of what they were going to say as well as providing proper media support to the sailors and marines in the same way as would have been the case in more ordinary circumstances."

There was speculation that the Government might be keen to promote their stories as a way of countering the propaganda Iran made out of the hostages' so-called confessions.

"I am not certain that there is not some political shenanigans going on behind the scenes," said Major General Patrick Cordingley, who commanded the 7th Armoured Brigade Desert Rats in the 1991 Gulf War.

The MoD's decision was welcomed by Lieutenant Felix Carman, the naval officer in the group.

He said: "Somebody, somewhere, is going to make money out of this story and they have said we are happy for you guys, the people who have been involved, to actually be the ones to do that. I think some people will probably take it up. However, I am just happy to get the actual truth out."

* As relatives of British soldiers killed in action condemned the Ministry of Defence (MoD) decision, it was announced that six members of Nato's International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan died and one was injured when their vehicle was blown up.

The dead soldiers were last night reported to be Canadians.