[CW] Code in Iran

[Mark Hogan]

 From one of my other lists.

Daily Mail

Iran hostages used Morse code in solitary
By NICK CONSTABLE and JOE KNOWSLEY - More by this author > Last updated at
22:31pm on 7th April 2007

One of the British seamen held hostage in Iran has told how they used Morse
code to stay in touch with one another while imprisoned.

Able Seaman Simon Massey revealed they developed a system of 'knocking in
and knocking out' during their first week of solitary confinement.

He said: "It was like keeping a mental register - checking off the voices of
comrades whenever one of them asked for a toilet break or a cigarette.

"Leading Seaman Chris Coe was next door to my cell. We would just sit there
tapping out code. We'd check up on each other, say goodnight, and if we went
out of the cell, we would give a little knock when we got back to let each
other know we were OK.

"Just knocking with knuckles. Little things like that got us through."

The use of Morse code by prisoners was made famous in the 1962 classic film
Birdman Of Alcatraz. It was also used by American PoWs in Vietnam.

The 14 men and one woman sailor were seized by Iranian warships on March 23.
It took 13 days to secure their release.

For the first week none of them saw Leading Seaman Faye Turney, 26, who was
kept segregated at their Tehran prison from the second day.

It was only after eight days, as AB Massey was summoned to make his TV
'confession', that he found himself seated alongside her and Chris Coe, 31.
He added: "Seeing those two members of the team - that was a big relief for
me. But the day after, in my cell, I just broke down. It was such a hard
time - all kinds of emotions were flying through.

"All us lads could hear one another but Faye was the only one none of us had
heard from. We had no idea what they'd done to her and whether they were
beating her."

For the first week the hostages spent all but half an hour of every day in
solitary.

Then there were the sudden and intense interrogations. AB Massey was
questioned, alone, for 45 minutes. "I was made to wear sunglasses with
cotton wool on the inside of the lenses, while an interrogator questioned me
under a bright light."

The most frightening incident came when they arrived at the prison and were
lined up to face a wall. AB Massey said: "We believe this was done purely as
a mental scare. But I thought I was going to die and that I wouldn't see my
family again."


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