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ReutersBAGHDAD, June 21 (Reuters) - The top U.S. commander in Iraq said in an interview published on Thursday that kidnappers who seized five Britons in Baghdad last month had links to Iran, adding he believed the captives were still alive.
General David Petraeus told the Times of London the kidnappers were part of the Mehdi Army militia of fiercely anti-American Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.
"They are not rank and file Jaish al-Mahdi (Mehdi Army). They are trained in Iran, equipped with Iranian (weapons), and advised by Iran," Petraeus told The Times. A transcript of the interview was posted on the British daily's Web site.
Iran denies any role in stirring up violence in Iraq. There was no immediate response from Tehran to Petraeus' comments.
His remarks may add to tensions between Washington and Tehran. The two foes are already pitted in a dispute over Iran's nuclear programme.
U.S. troops arrested five Iranians in northern Iraq for aiding militants earlier this year, while Iran is holding three Iranian-U.S. citizens on security-related charges.
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U.S. Opts Not to Release Iranians Detained in Iraq Raid The United States will not release five Iranians detained in a U.S. military raid in northern Iraq until at least October, despite entreaties from the Iraqi government and growing behind-the-scenes pressure from Iran, according to U.S. officials. The delay is as much due to miscommunication within the U.S. government as a policy decision, they said.
During his Washington visit Monday and Tuesday, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari appealed to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates to free the five Iranians, who were arrested in the Kurdish city of Irbil in January, U.S. and Arab officials said.
Zebari told U.S. officials that the release would promote progress in the new U.S.-Iran dialogue on Iraq, which brought diplomats from the two nations together last month in Baghdad at their first public meeting in almost three decades. Iran has become pivotal to U.S. efforts to stabilize Iraq, since Tehran now has greater influence in Iraq with a wider cross section of parties than any other country. It has also armed, funded and trained many of the militant groups.
Zebari warned that Tehran either might not attend a second session or not be cooperative unless the five Iranians are released, according to the sources.
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