Faye Turney, a mother, wife and Royal Navy sailor, is the unwitting face of a diplomatic crisis between Britain and Iran over Tehran?s capture of 15 British military personnel.

Already singled out as the only female captive, Turney was pushed further into the spotlight when Iran broadcast an interview with the 26-year-old on Wednesday and released a letter, which it said she had written to her parents.

The images of Turney ? dragging on a cigarette, her blonde hair shrouded by a black scarf ? were beamed across the world, adding a human touch to an already highly charged situation.

Her words ? confessing to trespassing in Iranian waters and apologising for what happened ? were seen in the British press as Iranian propaganda.

?A mother on parade in Iran?s propaganda war,? read the front page of the Times yesterday. ?Outrage,? said the Mirror.

Turney is said by the media to live in Plymouth, south-west England, with husband Adam and three-year-old daughter Molly.

In a photograph shown on British television, she was pictured with her family before the Iran ordeal.

The portrait contrasts starkly with the images broadcast by Al-Alam, Iran?s state-run Arabic-language television channel.

Turney is seen in a boat with fellow crew members. She and a number of the captured sailors are also pictured eating off plastic plates in a well-lit room. Separately, the female sailor is interviewed alone against a backdrop of floral curtains.

?Obviously we trespassed into their waters,? Turney said in an even voice, looking grave but calm. The hand-written letter, said to be written by the Briton, was similarly carefully worded.

Turney apologised for the apparent trespass and tried to reassure her family that she was well. ?Please don't worry about me. I am staying strong. Hopefully it won't be long until I am home to get ready for Molly's birthday party...?

Just hours before her capture last Friday, she happened to be interviewed by the BBC. Turney described how she enjoyed her job but would save half an hour each day to contact her family.

?I am the only mum on board at the moment. A lot of people find it hard to understand why and how I can do the job I do but I have always wanted to join the forces,? she said. ?My daughter fully accepts what I do ... as long as she is happy then I can get on with doing what I do.?

Iran seized two boatloads of British navy personnel in the Gulf last Friday, sparking the diplomatic crisis. Tehran insists the group was inside Iranian waters at the time.

London says the crews were in Iraqi waters and entitled to be there. Britain is demanding their immediate release.