U.S. Military Captures Iraqi Arms Monitor

The U.S. military said Sunday that it had captured Gen. Hussam Mohammed Amin, Saddam Hussein’s liaison with U.N. weapons inspectors.

The general, No. 49 on the list of 55 most-wanted members of Hussein’s regime, was caught west of Baghdad on a road heading toward Jordan and Syria, officials said. U.S. Central Command in Qatar reported that Amin was “now under coalition control.”

Amin had led the Iraqi National Monitoring Directorate, which tracked the country’s armaments, and he met frequently with U.N. inspectors. He appeared frequently on television, giving news conferences when inspectors were in town. He took every occasion to deny that his country had any banned weapons. He reportedly did so again Sunday as he was being taken into custody.

Two weeks ago, Hussein’s top scientific advisor, Gen. Amir Saadi, surrendered to authorities. He also insisted that his country had no weapons of mass destruction.

U.S. Special Forces operating near the northern Iraqi town of Baiji late last week found more than a dozen 55-gallon drums full of chemicals and two mobile chemical labs in a field surrounded by surface-to-air missiles.

The 10th Cavalry Regiment was called in, and preliminary tests showed the presence of cyclosarin, a nerve agent, as well as a blister agent that may be mustard gas, military officials said.

U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Charles Owens, a spokesman with the U.S. Central Command in Qatar, said that only field tests had been done and laboratory tests would be needed to make a final determination.

Some past chemical finds have turned out to be pesticides. But coalition forces are hoping Amin will help lead them to the so far elusive weapons that were one of the major stated reasons for attacking Iraq on March 20.

Meanwhile, the retired U.S. general in charge of efforts to rebuild Iraq said in a radio address Sunday that the United States was working to improve security and essential services, and he pledged to leave the country with an open government when U.S. forces pull out.

“I am here to help you rebuild your country and turn your government into one that serves you,” Jay Garner said on U.S.-run Towards Freedom radio, one of the few media outlets operating in Iraq since the collapse of the Hussein regime. “You will have an open and honest government. This is your dream, my dream and the world’s dream.”

Garner’s first sentence was audible in English; the remainder was dubbed in Arabic. The address was followed by a statement from the U.S. military emphasizing its efforts to crack down on looting and other crimes.

Many Iraqis have expressed mixed feelings about the U.S. occupation of their country. While they are grateful that Hussein has been ousted, they also are angry about the death and destruction caused by the war and are chafing over the collapse of services such as electricity and water.

Angry residents confronted U.S. troops on the southeastern edge of Baghdad on Saturday after an ammunition dump managed by U.S. forces exploded, killing at least six people. Even though it appeared that Iraqi gunfire or explosives set off the blasts, residents blamed the Americans.

In the radio address, Garner repeated his pledge that he would not stay in Iraq long. “My time here will be short, just to make things work properly.”

In downtown Baghdad, four members of the U.S. Army’s Civil Affairs unit were ambushed Sunday as they were driving to a public health mission, Central Command reported. Four soldiers were shot and wounded, one seriously.

“Initial reports indicate they were engaged with small arms fire from an assailant who approached them while they were stopped in traffic,” a military spokesman said.

The spokesman did not know whether the attacker was killed.

In Tikrit, Hussein’s hometown, one U.S. soldier died and another was hurt when two Bradley fighting vehicles they were traveling in overturned.

The Bradleys, from the U.S. Army’s 4th Infantry Division, were part of a quick-reaction force racing to a checkpoint that was under fire, officials said.

The injured soldier was listed in stable condition. The identities of the dead and wounded were withheld pending notification of family members.

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Kelly reported from Amman, Jordan, and Porubcansky from Baghdad.