London, March 31(IRNA) British naval personnel arrested by Iran last week should not have been carrying out military operations in the Persian Gulf, according the UK's biggest peace campaign network.

"Their detention is a consequence of the illegal occupation of Iraq. Whether they were in Iraqi or Iranian waters is immaterial. They should not be there at all and we demand the withdrawal of all UK forces from Iraqi territory," Stop the War Coalition (STWC) said.

The STWC also criticized the US for setting a "path of escalating confrontation and provocation with Iran - threats of attack (including nuclear attack), arrest of diplomats, economic sanctions." "Incidents like this are a consequence of that policy. The answer is de-escalation of tension and commitment to peaceful resolution of disputes and respect for Iranian sovereignty," it said in a statement.

The STWC also said that it believed that the arrested sailors and marines should be allowed to return to Britain as speedily as possible like other soldiers in Iraq.