IRAQ: HEAD OF THE UNITED STATES DIVISION THAT CAPTURED FORMER PRESIDENT SADDAM HUSSEIN GIVES MORE DETAILS OF ARREST

Record ID: 337942

  • Title: IRAQ: HEAD OF THE UNITED STATES DIVISION THAT CAPTURED FORMER PRESIDENT SADDAM HUSSEIN GIVES MORE DETAILS OF ARREST
  • Date: 17th December 2003
  • Summary: (W7) TIKRIT, IRAQ (DECEMBER 15, 2003) (REUTERS) 1. WIDE OF NEWS CONFERENCE/ PAN TO PLAN 2. SOUNDBITE (English) COLONEL JAMES B HICKEY, COMMANDING OFFICER OF THE 4TH INFANTRY DIVISION THAT CAPTURED SADDAM HUSSEIN: "AT 1050 hours (07:50 GMT) on Saturday morning, 13th December, I received information in my command post of a certain individual who was detained down in Baghdad, an individual that we were very interested in talking to - he was picked up in Baghdad. We were able to interrogate that individual up here in Tikrit and some very very qualified people conducted that interrogation not too far from here" 3. SCU STILL PHOTOGRAPH 4. SOUNDBITE (English) HICKEY "Well as I've told many of your colleagues in the past, we have conducted raids against Saddam Hussein numerous times: my guess is we've probably done it at least twelve times. On some of those raids we had some very good information, good enough for me to order a raid. In some of those cases I think we were very close simply because of what we learned and because of the confidence we had in the information which led to the decision to conduct the raid. In each case however we gleaned useful information that we were allowed to put into our intelligence estimate at any given time and gain a better understanding of the situation in general" 1.40 5. SCU PLAN OF SADDAM HUSSEIN'S HIDEOUT 1.46 6. SOUNDBITE (English) HICKEY "I don't think I can discern direct linkages between let's say Saddam Hussein and the men that my soldiers fight on a daily basis or with the men that former regime elements used to coordinate those enemy activities. It's not possible for me at my level to show a direct linkage but I think time will tell and I'm sure other people will be able to do a very good job at figuring out that linkage" 2.13 7. SCU STILL PHOTOGRAPHS OF SADDAM HIDEOUT 2.20 8. MV HICKEY WALKING OFF 2.28 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
  • Embargoed: 1st January 2004 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: TIKRIT, IRAQ
  • Country: Iraq
  • Reuters ID: LVAEFSPZGMSTXQATC5GM1WXPK9UV
  • Story Text: Head of U.S. division that captured Saddam gives more details of the
    arrest.

    More details emerged of how Saddam was caught on Saturday in a pit
    hideout near his northern Iraqi home town of Tikrit.

    The army was led to Saddam -- hiding near a shepherd's hut in an orange
    grove -- by a wealthy local arrested on Saturday.

    "AT 1050 hours (07:50 GMT) on Saturday morning, 13 December, I
    received information in my command post of a certain individual who was
    detained down in Baghdad, an individual that we were very interested in
    talking to", said Colonel James B. Hickey, Commanding Officer of the
    Fourth Infantry Division that captured Saddam.

    "We were able to interrogate that individual up here in Tikrit and
    some very very qualified people conducted that interrogation not too far from
    here", Hickey continued.

    "We have conducted raids against Saddam Hussein numerous times: my
    guess is we've probably done it at least 12 times. On some of those raids we
    had some very good information, good enough for me to order a raid. In some of
    those cases I think we were very close simply because of what we learned and
    because of the confidence we had in the information which led to the decision
    to conduct the raid. In each case however we gleaned useful information that
    we were allowed to put into our intelligence estimate at any given time and
    gain a better understanding of the situation in general".

    Asked about possible coordination between Saddam Hussein and attacks on
    U.S. soldiers, Hickey said that at his level he could not discern links, but
    was sure other people would figure it out in time.

    Saddam was captured in a so-called Sunni Muslim "triangle",
    including Baghdad, where most of the attacks have occurred. Saddam, a Sunni,
    repressed Iraq's Shi'ite majority.

    Saddam, who had urged his troops to go down fighting U.S.-led forces,
    was armed but surrendered without a shot -- unlike his two sons, who died with
    guns blazing in July.


  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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