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Holy crap, i thought those pics were fake.. but obviously not
Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has been captured alive in his home town of Tikrit. The US has told the world: "We got him."
US administrator Paul Bremer told a packed press conference: "Ladies and Gentlemen, we got him."
He said it is a great day for Iraqis and added that "the tyrant is a prisoner".
A video of Saddam undergoing medical checks was shown to the conference.
The former leader looked dishevelled and tired in the video. Pictures were then shown of him shaven.
The second the video came onto screens at the press conference, cheers erupted from Iraqi reporters who repeatedly shouted: "The end for Saddam."
Operation Red Dawn, to kill or capture Saddam, was carried out at 8pm local time last night by the 4th Infantry Division and Coalition special operations forces.
Saddam is now being held under tight security and has been described as "talkative and cooperative" and "a man resigned to his fate".
Tony Blair, who has returned to Downing Street from Chequers, said in a statement that Saddam was seized last night.
The British Prime Minister said the arrest is "very good news for the people of Iraq".
Saddam was dug out of a six to eight-foot hole in a cellar by US soldiers with shovels, after he buried himself to avoid capture.
US forces, backed by Kurdish troops, found the cellar in a house in a poverty-stricken area. Saddam was asleep at the time.
DNA and medical tests have been carried out and the 66-year-old's identity confirmed.
He is currently under tight security in detention and three members of the Iraqi Governing Council have been invited to go to Tikrit at 1pm GMT to visually identify him.
Saddam, who had been on the run since the US took Baghdad on April 9, was found with a suitcase containing 750,000 dollars worth of cash.
Ahmad Chalabi, a leader of the Iraqi National Congress (INC), has said Saddam, who was captured without resistance, will probably be put on trial.
Chalabi told Iraqi television: "He was arrested without resistance and there was enough time for him before that to commit suicide if he wanted but he did not."
A top Iraqi official said US administrator Paul Bremer called Iraqi leaders by telephone to tell them the news.
President Bush is in Camp David and has not yet made any statement.
The news is spreading around Iraq rapidly and hundreds of exultant people have taken to the streets of Kirkuk and Baghdad firing weapons into the air in celebration.
Saddam was at the top of the US most wanted list, appearing as the "ace of spades" in the pack of cards depicting former Iraqi leaders.
Washington put a $25m reward on his head.
Saddam's sons Uday and Qusay Hussein were killed in a raid in July
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Currently Addicted to: Covenant - Northern Light
