Troops step up Saddam search

The hunt for Saddam Hussein is taking on new urgency because of the rise in attacks on US forces and concern that his possible return could spur revolt against US forces and frighten off Iraqis from co-operating with American reconstruction efforts.

Attackers yesterday launched three new strikes on US targets in Baghdad, killing a US soldier and an Iraqi driver in sharply escalating resistance.

Ten US servicemen were wounded and a defence official said two more were believed to have been kidnapped from the town of Balad, northeast of Baghdad.

The US Army is being inundated with tips about Saddam's alleged whereabouts, and an elite special operations force is carrying out hundreds of raids and setting up checkpoints throughout central Iraq.

It's an open question whether Saddam is alive, but getting an answer is important, said Lieutenant-General John Abizaid.

Abizaid has been nominated to replace General Tommy Franks as head of US Central Command.

"It's important because the fear factor is high. It's important because he was a brutal dictator who killed hundreds of thousands of his own people, and it's important for the Iraqi people to come to closure with this nightmare that he imposed on them," he said.

The Americans have assembled a secret team of Special Forces, called Task Force 20, to hunt down Saddam and his sons, Uday and Qusay, and other members of his inner circle.

The challenge facing the US forces is to capture Saddam by overcoming his stealthy manoeuvres and continuing hold on a segment of the population in the Sunni stronghold of central Iraq, said Major Josslyn Aberle and Lieutenant-Colonel Bill MacDonald, of the Army's Fourth Infantry Division.

"Saddam was a master of misleading and deception and moving from place to place before the war," said Aberle.

It was obvious Saddam and other top regime figures continued to be on the move, but that could be their undoing.

"If they bounce around long enough, there are people who will come forward."

But Saleh Jassem, a 31-year-old former soldier, said: "If Saddam were here we wouldn't tell anyone. He's our dearest leader. He was the bravest of the Arab leaders. He maintained our human rights.

"Not for all the oil in Iraq would I give up Saddam."

A crowd of like-minded Tikrit residents and shopkeepers in the city's bazaar voiced their approval. One showed off a portrait of Saddam.

Many Iraqis, however, are urging the Americans to intensify the search for Saddam.

Finding Saddam would be a blow to those attacking Americans and saboteurs blowing up gas and oil pipelines, said Mehdi Hafedh, vice-president of the pro-democracy group Iraqi Independent Democrats.

"It would undermine their plans to destabilise the situation," he said.

Attacks against US-led forces in Iraq are intensifying, with at least 20 American soldiers dying in hostile fire since major combat was declared over in May.

The British military has ordered a suspension of weapons searches in the area of southern Iraq where six soldiers were killed while a review takes place over the civilian population's right to carry arms.

The Army has agreed to a two-month "cooling-off" period in the town of Majar al-Kabir, near Amarah, and this may be extended to other areas in an effort to diffuse the rise in anti-British sentiment.

There is acknowledgement among defence staff that a lack of understanding of the local people contributed to the fatal confrontation on Wednesday in which six members of the Royal Military Police died.

The people of Majar al-Kabir deposed the local Baath regime without help from the British or Americans and there is a tradition of independence in the area.

Some British officers believe this was not taken into account in attempts to disarm the population.

The British commander in Iraq highlighted the resentment about the disarming process when he said the violence might have been sparked by people believing they were about to be searched.

Major-General Peter Wall said: "The townspeople expected searches for weapons to be conducted by our patrols. That was not our intent and this had been explained to the town council at a formal meeting earlier in the week, when the strength of resentment to searches had become clear."

Members of the Royal Military Police were revealed yesterday to have radioed for help during the siege at the police station but it did not arrive in time.

"British reserves did not get through," said Wall.

There is also concern about misjudgment of the mood in the British-controlled part of Iraq. Officials believe a mood of complacency had arisen because there had been no serious armed clashed between local people and the British, while the Americans faced weekly attacks.

- REUTERS, INDEPENDENT

Herald Feature: Iraq