http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.../15/wirq15.xml
Tensions between Washington and Teheran deepened yesterday after the American military accused five Iranians detained by its forces in Iraq of helping to supply cash, weapons and training to Shia militias on behalf of the Iranian regime.
Iran rejected the claims of collusion with Iraq's Shia Muslim militants and demanded the release of the officials, who were stationed at a liaison office in Irbil, the capital of Kurdish northern Iraq.
A statement from the US military said: "Preliminary results revealed the five detainees are connected to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Qods Force, an organisation known for providing funds, weapons, IEDs [roadside bombs], technology and training to extremist groups attempting to destabilise the government of Iraq and attack coalition forces."
Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state who is touring the Middle East, said America would no longer tolerate Teheran's support for armed groups in Iraq.
She revealed at the weekend that President George W Bush had issued a standing order to the military to target covert Iranian activities.
She said: "I think there is plenty of evidence that there is Iranian involvement with these networks that are making high-explosive [bombs] and that they are endangering our troops, and that's going to be dealt with."
Dick Cheney, the US Vice-President, also warned Iran last night that it should desist from assisting its Shia allies in Iraq.
Mr Cheney said. "I think it's been pretty well-known that Iran is fishing in troubled waters, if you will, inside Iraq. The threat that Iran represents is growing, it's multi-dimensional, and it is, in fact, of concern to everybody in the region."
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Iran's foreign ministry claimed that the arrested men were working in a consulate and entitled to diplomatic immunity.
Mohammad Ali Hosseini, the foreign ministry's spokesman, said: "Americans should immediately release the five Iranians and pay compensation for the damages they caused to our office in Irbil."
Hoshyar Zebari, Iraq's foreign minister, conceded that the office had not yet been granted consular status but he appealed for America to recognise the political sensitivities involved.
"We can't change the geographical reality that Iran is our neighbour," he said. "This is a delicate balance and we are treading a very thin line."
Officials in Baghdad yesterday predicted that the seized Iranians would be released this week, claiming high ranking officials named in intelligence documents had evaded capture.
Allegations that Iranian Revolutionary Guard officers supplied weapons and know- how to Iraqi militias first surfaced 15 months ago after British troops in Basra were killed by a series of roadside bombs designed to penetrate armour plating.
In recent months such devices have killed US soldiers.
Coalition commanders accuse the paramilitary Iranian Revolutionary Guard of providing bomb-making skills and sniper training to Iraqi militias in bases on Iran's side of the border.
The Madhi Army, the biggest militia in central Iraq, started off as an organised rabble but now boasts hundreds of skilled guerrillas, adept in the techniques of urban warfare.
As Shia groups have gained in strength the balance of killing in Iraq has tilted.
Iraq's most senior Sunni politician, the vice-president, Tariq al-Hashemi, said at the weekend that the majority of victims of the sectarian conflict are from his community.
• President Bashar al-Asad of Syria welcomed his Iraqi counterpart, Jalal Talabani, to Damascus yesterday in the hope of bolstering diplomatic relations between the neighbouring countries.
In what was hailed as a landmark visit that came despite the hostile position President Bush has taken on Syria, Mr Talabani arrived to a warm reception ahead of five days of negotiations over trade and security issues.
Iranians 'Trained Shia Militants'
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