Free Republic

Qayis and Layith Qazali. Click to view. The kidnapping of five British contractors - four security guards and a financial consultant - has long been suspected of being an Iranian-backed job. A recent report in the Times Online confirmed an Iranian extremist group has demanded the release of Qais Qazali, the leader of the Iranian-backed Qazali network, in exchange for the five Britons. "Senior Iraqi government sources say their captors have promised they will not be harmed but any rescue attempt would endanger them," the Times Online reported. "They claimed the hostages will remain prisoners 'for as long as...

Iraqi security forces detained an Iranian operative in southern Iraq in the latest operation designed to curb Iran's influence in the war-torn country. Iraqi security forces have detained four Iranian operatives since the beginning of October. On Oct. 1, the US military announced that Iraqi paramilitary police from the National Emergency Response Brigade arrested Khalid Masur Isma’il during a raid in the Shia slum of Sadr City. Isma’il served as "financier and recruiter" for the Hezbollah Brigades... Two other Hezbollah Brigades operatives have been captured in Baghdad this month. On Oct. 3, Iraqi troops arrested a man thought to be...