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General: U.S. captures Saddam bodyguardsIraqi nuclear scientist surrenders
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- The commanding general of a U.S. Army division said Friday that American forces believe they have captured several of Saddam Hussein's personal bodyguards during a raid in north-central Iraq. Maj. Gen. Ray Odierno of the 4th Infantry Division said the raid took place Thursday at a house south of Tikrit, the deposed Iraqi president's hometown. "We had somebody come into Tikrit, the 1st Brigade, and give us ... a tip to conduct a raid on a house south of Tikrit, which we conducted last night," Odierno said in a video teleconference from Baghdad with reporters in Washington. "Based on the informant south of Tikrit, we detained 13 individuals. Somewhere between five to 10 of those, we are still sorting through it, are believed to be Saddam Hussein's personal security detachment." Odierno said it wasn't clear how recently the bodyguards had been protecting Saddam and that the hunt for the deposed Iraqi leader was continuing. "We have also talked to one of his wives ... and so we have talked to several people in this area," he said. "I believe that we continue to tighten the noose." An Iraqi scientist associated with Saddam's nuclear programs surrendered to U.S. authorities in Baghdad on Thursday, U.S. defense officials said Friday. The officials identified the scientist as Abdullah Abbus Khandush, and said he was cooperating with the United States but that any information he was providing would not be made public, at least in the short term. It's hoped the scientist will be able to provide information about Iraq's nuclear weapons program. (Full story) Graphic footage of corpsesFor the first time Friday, Iraqis and other TV viewers throughout the world saw graphic videotape of two bullet-riddled bodies that the U.S. military said are Saddam's sons. (Full story) On Thursday, the U.S.-backed Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq released still photos of the blood-spattered, bearded corpses to news agencies. The U.S. military took the unusual step of allowing reporters to view and videotape the bodies Friday at close range and in extensive detail to combat skepticism that Uday and Qusay Hussein were really killed in a firefight Tuesday with U.S. soldiers in the northern city of Mosul. (Timeline of the attack) A coalition spokeswoman acknowledged that releasing photos Thursday might not have been enough to prove that Saddam's sons were dead. Most newspapers in the region didn't get the photos in time for Friday's editions. (Iraqis react, Viewer discretion advised: Gallery of still photos) On Friday, military morticians told reporters seeing the corpses that the faces of both bodies had been partially reconstructed and prepared for viewing. Military pathologists said each body had more than 20 bullet wounds. After viewing the photos Thursday, some military officials had speculated that wounds on Uday's body could have been self-inflicted. But military pathologists said they had seen no signs of suicide. The Bush administration expects to pay the full $30 million reward to the informant who provided the tip leading U.S. troops to the home where Uday and Qusay were hiding, a senior State Department official said Friday. (Full story) Other developments• U.S. forces in Iraq have seized hundreds of surface-to-air missiles and large caches of other weapons and munitions during the past week, the Pentagon told CNN on Friday. They found most of the weapons after being led to them by cooperative Iraqis, according to one official. Among the arms seized are 12 Al-Samoud surface-to-surface ballistic missiles, which likely have a range in excess of 93 miles [150 kilometers] and might violate restrictions imposed on Iraq by the United Nations in 1991 after the Persian Gulf War. • Three American soldiers were killed Thursday morning in northern Iraq when small-arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades ambushed their convoy, according to the U.S. military. The soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division were traveling into Qayyarah, a town about 40 miles [64 kilometers] south of Mosul, when they were attacked, military officials said. Soldiers secured the ambush site and found two rocket-propelled grenades and an AK-47 assault rifle, according to U.S. Central Command. CNN correspondents Rym Brahimi, Nic Robertson, Barbara Starr and Harris Whitbeck contributed to this report.
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