BAGHDAD, Jan. 14 (Xinhua) -- Five Iranians detained last week by U.S. troops in Iraq's northern city of Irbil were connected to Iranian Revolutionary Guard which funds and arms insurgents in Iraq, the U.S. military said on Sunday.

    "Preliminary results revealed that the five detainees are connected to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard -- Qods Force (IRGC-QF), an organization known for providing funds, weapons, improvised explosive device technology and training to extremist groups attempting to destabilize the Government of Iraq and attack Coalition forces," the U.S. military said in a statement.

    U.S. force on Thursday detained five personnel of the Iranian consulate in Irbil and confiscated the facility's computers and some documents.

    There has been debate over whether the Iranian facility in Irbil where the men were arrested had diplomatic status, and would therefore be protected by international treaties.

    The U.S. military described the facility as an Iranian "liaison office, but did not enjoy the diplomatic status of a consulate."

    Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, a Kurd, described the Iranian facility as a liaison office that had government approval and was in the process of being approved as an Iranian consulate.

    The incident came hours after the U.S. President George W. Bush declared his new strategy for Iraq, in which he accused Iran of supporting attacks on U.S. troops in Iraq and vowed to "disrupt" the attacks.

    "Iran is providing material support for attacks on American troops. We will disrupt the attacks on our forces," Bush said in his speech on Wednesday.