Operation Red Dawn, which led to the capture of Saddam Hussein, followed crucial information from a member of a family close to the former Iraqi leader. The capture of Saddam Hussein is a warning to other terrorists such as Osama Bin Laden and Mullah Omar. Some 600 US 4th Infantry division troops, together with special forces swooped on the town of Al-Dawr, near Tikrit in northern Iraq, sealing off a farm.

Two likely hiding places were searched, one of which turned out to be the tiny ?spider hole? chamber the former dictator had hidden in. Saddam Hussein was pulled out, ?disoriented? and ?bewildered?, and although armed with a pistol he put up no resistance, Major General Raymond Odierno said.

He added that the former Iraqi leader ?could have been hiding in a thousand different places like this all around Iraq and it just takes finding the right person who will give you a good idea where he might be?.

Detailed accounts of the operation revealed it took place at lightning speed and under cover of darkness. Troops became suspicious of a small walled farm compound containing a metal lean and a mud hut. Searching the compound, troops discovered the hideaway, camouflaged with bricks and dirt and covered with styrofoam and a carpet.

At about 2030 local time, they entered and found Saddam Hussein hiding at the bottom. The former Iraqi leader had secreted himself about 6-8ft underground, in a chamber barely large enough to allow a person to lie down. No shots were fired during the operation and he offered no resistance. Two other people, believed to have formed Saddam Hussein?s small entourage, were also captured and taken away for interrogation.

Maj. Gen. Odierno said the farm where the former dictator was found consisted of ?two very small rooms in an adobe hut?. He said one was a bedroom that was cluttered with clothes, including new T-shirts and socks and a ?very rudimentary? kitchen, with running water.

Saddam Hussein would have moved from the building into the hole whenever coalition forces were in the area, Maj. Gen. Odierno added. He said the hole was very close to the Tigris river, within view of some of the captive?s palaces. ?I think it was rather ironic that he was in a hole in the ground across the river from these great palaces that he has built, where he robbed all the money from the Iraqi people,? Odierno said.

Although the area had been searched before it was likely Saddam Hussein had not been there, as he was thought to have moved often and at short notice. The spokesman said it was likely he had been there for a short time when the ?ultimate information? came from a member of a family brought in for questioning.

No mobile phones or other communications equipment was found, suggesting that Saddam Hussein was providing ?moral support? and was no longer co-ordinating the Iraqi resistance, Maj. Gen. Odierno added. Lieutenant-General Ricardo Sanchez said the former dictator was ?talkative and co-operative?, had no injuries and was in good health. Along with the former Iraqi dictator, troops discovered US $750,000 cash in $100 bills, two AK-47 machine guns, and two other Iraqi associates. A white and orange taxi was parked in the compound. The former Iraqi leader was removed at 2115 and taken to an undisclosed secure location, General Sanchez said.

He showed a news conference a videotape of a dishevelled and heavily-bearded Saddam Hussein being examined by an American doctor. The general described him as ?a tired man, a man resigned to his fate?. Several Iraqis at the conference began wildly shouting ?death to Saddam? as the pictures were shown.

The mission came after a intense intelligence-gathering operation in the Tikrit area over several months. American forces gradually built up a picture of Saddam Hussein?s likely whereabouts through tip-offs, interrogations of detainees and rigorous analysis of information.

The tip-off on Saturday came as the first piece of so-called ?actionable intelligence?, pointing troops to a specific location. Analysts have suggested that Saddam Hussein hid near his home town Tikrit ? his political and tribal powerbase ? in the hope that remaining local supporters would shelter him from coalition forces.

But it must be speculated that the $25m reward offered by the US for information leading to his capture may well have played a part in undermining these traditional loyalties ? and sealing his fate.