Washington, 10 June 2003 (RFE/RL) -- The U.S. Defense Department says U.S. forces have captured two more of the 55 most-wanted Iraqis, including a former member of Saddam Hussein's inner circle. Latif Nusayyif al-Jasim al-Dulaymi, 18th on the list, was in the Revolutionary Command Council, a small group of Hussein's top advisers, and was a deputy secretary of the Ba'ath Party's military bureau.
The Pentagon says the second man captured was a top official in the chemical-weapons corps of the Iraqi military. Brigadier General Husayn al-Awadi, 53rd on the most-wanted list, also was a regional Ba'ath Party leader in Ninawa, in northern Iraq.
More than half of the top 55 wanted Iraqis are now in U.S. custody.
The Pentagon says the second man captured was a top official in the chemical-weapons corps of the Iraqi military. Brigadier General Husayn al-Awadi, 53rd on the most-wanted list, also was a regional Ba'ath Party leader in Ninawa, in northern Iraq.
More than half of the top 55 wanted Iraqis are now in U.S. custody.