Fears for five Britons held hostage in Iraq for more than a year have grown after British officials concluded the men have come under the control of "hardliners" and hinted that Hizbullah might be involved in their kidnapping, the Daily Telegraph reported.

"The intermediaries are not bringing anything back from their contacts anymore and are blaming the real hardliners, who are now in control," a British official told the daily.

The five men, a computer expert and his four-man security detail, were seized from the ministry of finance in Baghdad in May, 2007.

The British newspaper said there were concerns that any opportunity to negotiate the men's release has been lost.

"Hizbullah, which trains and directs Iraqi Shiite fighters both within the country and at bases in Iran is also believed to be playing an increasingly important role in the situation," the Daily Telegraph said.

"Less and less is coming from the channels as we see a phenomenon of splintering among the splinter group that is holding these men," said one official with on the ground duties in Baghdad. "This is now a situation where the Hizbullah loyalists who have no where to go politically, are in charge."

The kidnapping of the five Britons has been described by government officials as "planned and executed from the Hizbullah playbook," the newspaper said.

One official said the involvement of Hizbullah raised the probability that the men, like hostages in Lebanon a generation ago, will either die in captivity or be held for many years.(AP photo shows a British soldier standing guard after a roadside bomb explosion in Basra, 550 kilometers southeast of Baghdad)