How Saddam Hussein Was Finally Captured: When the Iraq War began, American forces spread across the country searching for one man, the former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. Months had passed, military bases were raided, loyalists were detained, and entire regions were scrutinised. Yet Saddam remained out of reach. Commanders who had served him closely were questioned again and again, but nothing solid ever surfaced. It was at this crucial stage that a new officer stepped in: Major Brian Reed Maddox from U.S. Army Intelligence.
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The Old Interrogation Strategy Was Failing
Until Maddox arrived, the American forces had been focused on Saddam’s top military leaders. The expectation was that these senior officers would eventually reveal something useful. But this belief proved completely wrong. The generals either genuinely didn’t know Saddam’s whereabouts or simply refused to reveal anything. This stale approach had exhausted itself.
Maddox, however, brought a fresh perspective. He ordered the teams to stop chasing high-ranking commanders and instead go back to Saddam’s personal roots. He insisted that the real clues would come from the people who had been around Saddam since childhood, his relatives, cooks, drivers, neighbours, and childhood friends. This shift in strategy transformed the entire investigation.
A New Set of 300 People Comes Into Focus
Following Maddox’s direction, intelligence units identified around three hundred individuals who had long-standing personal connections to Saddam. Many of these people belonged to the Al-Bu Nasir tribe, a clan closely associated with Saddam’s family for decades. As these people were questioned, one name began appearing again and again, the Al-Musallat brothers. There was confusion about their exact identities, but one name stood out most frequently: Ibrahim al-Musallat.
A Breakthrough with the Arrest of Waseem Lateef
In the first week of December 2003, American forces managed to arrest Waseem Lateef, the driver of Ibrahim al-Musallat. During his interrogation, he revealed something critical. The three Al-Musallat brothers were responsible for arranging Saddam’s hideouts. They handled everything for him, from his food and water to his medical needs and secret movements. This information pointed straight towards the people who had been shielding Saddam the closest.
Armed with this new lead, U.S. forces arrested Ibrahim al-Musallat on 12 December 2003. What he disclosed during the interrogation changed the entire direction of the mission.
Ibrahim Reveals Saddam’s Hiding Area
Under pressure, Ibrahim finally revealed that Saddam was hiding at a place located roughly two to two-and-a-half hours away from Baghdad. The location was near Tikrit, about fifteen kilometres south, in a small town called Ad-Dawr. He explained that there were two specific farmhouses in that region, and Saddam was most likely hiding somewhere close to them. These two locations were immediately given code names by the U.S. forces: Wolverine One and Wolverine Two.
Operation “Red Dawn” Begins
By the evening of 13 December 2003, nearly six hundred American soldiers prepared for a major operation. Equipped with helicopters, trained dogs, thermal scanners, and night-vision gear, they advanced toward Ad-Dawr. Around six in the evening, they positioned themselves near Highway 21 by the Tigris River. Both Wolverine locations were surrounded from multiple sides, sealing off every possible escape route.
At around 7:45 PM, American forces cut off the electricity supply to the entire town. Darkness engulfed the region, but the soldiers had night-vision equipment, giving them a significant advantage. Thermal scanners started sweeping the fields, while helicopters monitored from above.
Two Men Attempt to Flee
Around 8:15 PM, two men suddenly emerged from the Wolverine Two farmhouse area and tried to run into the nearby bushes. They were swiftly captured. One of them turned out to be Saddam’s cook, and the other was his cousin. Despite repeated questioning, neither of them disclosed anything. Their silence only deepened the mystery.
A Suspicious Hut Raises Curiosity
While continuing their search, soldiers noticed an L-shaped hut about three hundred metres away from the main farmhouse. Inside this hut, they found two AK-47 rifles, seven and a half lakh U.S. dollars, and a small boat. These items clearly signalled that Saddam had been nearby recently. Yet, there was still no trace of him. Even the trained search dogs found nothing unusual.
Frustration began building up within the team. It started to seem like Saddam had slipped away once again.
The Final Psychological Move
Colonel James Hickey, the head of the operation, then made a decisive move. He ordered that Ibrahim al-Musallat be brought to the Wolverine Two location. Soldiers placed him in front of the captured cook, creating intense psychological pressure. Surrounded by armed troops, Ibrahim finally broke down. He hesitated for a moment but then pointed toward an old, worn-out mat lying in the corner.
The Hidden Underground Entrance
The mat was removed, and the earth beneath it looked different. It was softer, loose, and recently disturbed. When the soldiers began digging, they found a small rope. Pulling the rope revealed metal handles. As more earth was removed, a layer of Styrofoam appeared. Beneath it lay a narrow underground chamber.
Suddenly, a faint coughing sound rose from inside the hole. Soldiers immediately took defensive positions. An Iraqi–American interpreter was brought forward to communicate.
Moments later, a voice echoed from the darkness:
“I am Saddam Hussein… the President of Iraq… I am ready to negotiate.”
8:26 PM — This is How Saddam Hussein Was Finally Captured
At exactly 8:26 PM, Saddam Hussein was lifted out of the cramped underground hideout where he had been living for months. Disoriented, exhausted, and cornered, the former Iraqi dictator had finally been captured.
Operation “Red Dawn” succeeded not because of high-level military interrogations but because investigators retraced Saddam’s life from childhood and followed the people who knew his habits better than anyone else.
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