Michael Ware

Journalist

NR: Iranian captured inside Iraq released


Click photo to play
Length: 1:59


BRIANNA KEILAR: Iran's standoff with Britain's, Iran's hostility toward the U.S., Iran's connection with Iraq. Let's take a closer look now at those tangled relationships with CNN's Michael Ware, who is in Baghdad for us.

Michael, what can you tell us about Iranian detainees that are being held in Iraq and any possible U.S. role here?

MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, what we do know for sure is that there are at least five Iranian Revolutionary Guard Quds Force officers still in detention by the U.S.-led coalition here in Iraq.

Now when we say Revolutionary Guard Quds Force, Brianna, think American Green Beret with a mix of American Delta. I mean, this is among the best of their best, some of their most elite intelligence and covert operatives.

And the U.S. has five of them. Originally, America had seven of them, but two were quickly released.

Now we've seen the release of this second secretary from the Iranian embassy here in Baghdad. Now it's long been said by pro-American intelligence agencies in this country that this fellow is one of many in the Iranian embassy who's really working for the Iranian intelligence apparatus. Essentially, he's a spy, or he's some kind of agent, or operative.

Now what the Iranian foreign ministry is saying us that it was indeed Iraqis acting under U.S. supervision who kidnapped this diplomat in the first place and have now released him.

It's impossible to say if that's true or not. But we do have it from U.S. sources that one of the most likely candidates for making the diplomat disappear in the first place was the U.S.-backed Iraqi national intelligence service.

This is a very, very murky world. But there's definitely five elite Iranian officers still in U.S. detention.

KEILAR: Very murky world. Thank you there for clearing it up for us, Michael Ware in Baghdad.