BAGHDAD, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Iraq's foreign minister said he was seeking the release of five Iranians seized by U.S. troops from a representative office of the Tehran government in the Iraqi Kurdish city of Arbil on Thursday.
"What happened ... was very annoying because there has been an Iranian liaison office there for years and it provides services to the citizens," Hoshiyar Zebari, who is himself a Kurd, told Al-Arabiya television.
"We are in contact with the (U.S.) embassy and the American forces to seek their release."
After the autonomous Kurdish regional government, one of Washington's closest allies in Iraq, issued a strong condemnation of the raid, the U.S. military made a statement on Friday saying one of six people arrested had been released.
"The detained individuals will be questioned and the documents and equipment that was removed will be examined to determine the extent of the alleged illegal or terrorist activity," it said. "Based on the outcome of that investigation, appropriate action will be taken regarding the detainees."
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