Tonight the fifteen British sailors and marines are finally freed after almost two weeks captivity in Iran.

Inside Iran' s presidential palace the press room was packed, for the news conference had been mysteriously postponed from yesterday and the President of the Islamic Republic was expected to speak publicly for the first time about the fate of the 15 British captives.

At first it didn' t seem as if Mahmoud Ahmadinejad would. For more than an hour he lectured the world' s cameras on the history of American and British aggression, and on the injustice of UN sanctions aimed at halting Iran' s nuclear programme.

Then, with the President' s nationalist conservative powerbase thus appeased, an extraordinary drama began to unfold. The Revolutionary Guard commanders who' d captured the Britons were called onto the stage and awarded medals of honour.

' God is great!' shouted one of the Britons' captors, ' I sacrifice my life for the supreme leader.'

Setting the Britons free hardly seemed to be on the President' s agenda. He called them trespassers, and was clearly appalled at the decision to send a woman, Faye Turney to sea.

" The lady is the mother of a little child! Why should such a difficult task of searching the sea be given to a mother thousands of miles from home? Why don' t they pay some respect to a mother' s love? Why are family values in the west about to collapse?"

" Tony Blair should have told the British people the truth," he said, that the sailors had made a mistake.

And then he dropped his bombshell:

" I hereby announce that the great Iranian nation and the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, maintaining its sovereignty and its legal rights to these British forces on trial, will forgive these 15 captives. And grant their release to the British people as a gift. And this comes from the Islamic teachings of the Prophet Mohammed." - Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

And with that a 13 day diplomatic crisis was suddenly over. A clearly delighted Ahmadinejad had milked his appearance on the world stage, his fifteen minutes of fame lasting a full hour and a half. Iranian demands for a British apology apparently dropped.

It seemed Iran' s various governing factions just back from a long spring holiday had simply taken time to decide what to do with the sailors.

C4

• Iranian President Ahmadinejad meets UK detainees after announcing amnesty
• Ahmadinejad says 15 to be pardoned and freed as " gift to Brtish people"
• Downing Street welcomes remarks; 15 to be released to UK Embassy in Tehran
• Ahmadinejad commends bravery of border guards who detained the 15
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TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) -- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has met with some of the 15 British military personnel held in Iranian custody for almost two weeks, shortly after pardoning the group and vowing to set them free.

Iranian state television showed footage of Ahmadinejad shaking hands, smiling and chatting with the detainees who were dressed in suits. One of them was heard to comment in English: " We are grateful for your forgiveness."

Ahmadinejad joked with one of them: " What kind of compulsory trip were you on?" He added: " I wish you success." (Watch Ahmadinejad meet British detainess, wish them luck )

An Iranian diplomat in London told The Associated Press that the 15 would be handed over to the British Embassy in Tehran.

One source told the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency IRNA that the Britons will leave Tehran at 8 a.m. Thursday (0430 GMT).

British Prime Minister Tony Blair said the announcement comes " as a profound relief not just to them but to their families that have endured such distress and anxiety over these past 12 days."

" Throughout we have taken a measured approach: firm but calm, not negotiating but not confronting either," Blair said in a brief statement to reporters. (Watch Tony Blair react to news that UK personnel will be freed )

" To the Iranian people I would simply say this: We bear you no ill will. On the contrary, we respect Iran as an ancient civilization and as a nation with a proud and dignified history.

" And the disagreements that we have with your government we wish to resolve peacefully through dialogue. I hope, as I have always hoped, that in the future we are able to do so."

In Washington, White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said: " President Bush also welcomes the news."

Ahmadinejad announced the amnesty at the end of a lengthy news conference on Wednesday in which he said the detainees had violated Iran' s territorial waters and called their release " a gift to the British people."

" I declare that the people of Iran and the government of Iran -- in full power to place on trial the military people -- to give amnesty and pardon to these 15 people and I announce their freedom and their return to the people of Britain," Ahmadinejad said.

The action was a goodwill gesture for the Iranian new year, he said, adding that Iran had received a letter from Britain promising not to intrude into Iranian waters.

" The British government sent a letter to our Foreign Ministry and said it would not happen again. Of course, our decision had nothing to do with the letter. It' s a decision made by our government to give a gift to the people of Britain," Ahmadinejad said in answer to a reporter' s question. (Watch Ahmadinejad warn Blair not to question released personnel )

" They will go through some brief formalities and then they will go to the embassy," he said. " They can go on a British Airways flight to Heathrow, they can go through the UAE, it is up to the British Embassy in Tehran in coordination with the Foreign Office here."

Ahmadinejad had earlier praised the border guards who captured the 15, presenting their commander with a medal for bravery.

" I thank the border guards who bravely protect our borders and also arrested the violators, and I grant them the bravery medal to their commander," Ahmadinejad said.

Ahmadinejad' s annoucement followed a cooling in the diplomatic row that had raged between London and Tehran since the Britons' detention on March 23. (Watch how tempers have cooled in diplomatic dispute )

Iran had insisted that Britain must admit its military personnel intruded into Iranian territorial waters and " guarantee this violation would not be committed again."

Britain claimed the sailors and marines were well inside Iraqi waters when Iran captured them on March 23.

Iran had released several videos showing the 14 men and one woman in which they appeared to be in good health. Iran also released videotaped confessions from four of the sailors -- including the woman, Faye Turney. (Watch the two crew members describe their ' intrusion' )

Britain said the confessions were coerced and expressed its outrage at the videos' release.

CNN