Syrian rebels say seized Iranians were intelligence gathering

In an interview broadcast on Dubai-based al-Arabiya television on (August 5), Captain Abdel Nasser al-Shumair, commander of the al-Baraa brigade of the Free Syrian Army group, who claim responsibility for the kidnapping 48, said that his group took action after a two month investigation, during which they were notified, through intelligence information, that Iran was involved in intelligence gathering in Damascus."This operation took action after we received intelligence information revealing that Iran has sent groups on a reconnaissance mission in Damascus. And after two months of investigations, we managed to capture some captives who were members of a 150 Iranian revolutionary guards group," the commander of the al-Baraa brigade of the Free Syrian Army, Captain Abdel Nasser al-Shumair told Al-Arabiya Television.

The interview was aired after the broadcast of a video showing armed men checking the identity cards of the kidnapped Iranians.

"We received information about the Iranians and started tracking them for two months," al-Shumair said.

Fighters were "still checking the documents that prove the identity of these detainees and will make our findings public in due course," he added.

Iran has asked Turkey and Qatar to help secure the release of 48 Iranian pilgrims seized in the Syrian capital by rebels, who said they were checking their identities and would show they were involved in fighting opponents of President Bashar al-Assad.

Iranian media said on Saturday that a bus load of Iranians were abducted by gunmen while on a pilgrimage in Syria, the latest in a string of kidnappings of visitors from the Islamic Republic, a country allied to Assad.

Tehran has accused Turkey and Qatar of helping rebels fighting to topple Assad, a close ally Iran has praised for promising political reforms.

Several Iranians previously abducted in Syria though have been released to Turkish authorities before returning to Iran.

But the rebels said they were not in contact with any country over the release of the Iranians.

"Negotiations with parties inside or outside Syria are not open yet before we confirm the identity of the Iranians and prove that Iran is active on Syrian lands with its soldiers and

arms," Captain Abdel Nasser al-Shumair, commander of the al-Baraa brigade of the Free Syrian Army said in an interview with Dubai-based al-Arabiya television.

Syrian rebels accuse Iran of sending fighters from its Revolutionary Guard to help Assad's forces put down an uprising against his regime. Tehran denies the charges.