Former Saddam insider seized by Kurds in Mosul

IRAQ: The former Iraqi Vice President, Mr Taha Yassin Ramadan, was captured yesterday in the northern city of Mosul.

Mr Ramadan, known as "Saddam's knuckles" for taking a leading role in ousted President Saddam Hussein's purges, is number 20 on the US list of the 55 most-wanted figures in the regime. He was the 10 of Diamonds on the pack of cards distributed by the US military to troops with the aim of familiarising them with their faces.

A long-standing member of the toppled leader's inner circle, Mr Ramadan became part of Iraq's first family when his daughter married Saddam's eldest son, Uday.

Mr Ramadan was seized by the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), headed by Mr Jalal Talabani, one of the two Kurdish parties which fought alongside US troops in the war.

A PUK spokesman, Mr Adel Murad, said that Mr Ramadan had been disguised in peasant dress and was hiding with relatives or friends. His capture apparently came as a result of a tip-off. Saddam's two sons, Uday and Qusay, were also discovered in Mosul and killed in a shoot-out with the US forces on July 22nd.

Speaking from his ranch in Texas, President Bush welcomed the news of Mr Ramadan's detention following confirmation by the Pentagon that he had been turned over to US forces. "I am really pleased that we have captured the vice-president. Slowly but surely we'll find who we need to find."

Born in 1938 to a farming family in the Mosul region, Mr Ramadan completed his secondary education and took up employment as a bank clerk. He served in the army as a junior officer and joined the underground Baath party in 1956 where he formed a close relationship with the young Saddam Hussein.

Mr Ramadan rose through party ranks and was appointed to the regime's powerful Revolution Command Council after the coup which brought Baath to power in 1968. He remained on the council until the regime's collapse on April 9th.

In 1970, he headed a revolutionary court which sentenced 44 officers to death for plotting against the Baathist government.

He served as industry minister in the 1970s as well as commander of the Popular Army, a large paramilitary force established to protect the regime.

During a visit to Jordan during the 1980s, he was asked what the Baath thought of Islam. He said Muslims were free to practise their faith but asserted: "If they try to harm the Baathist regime or ridicule its slogans, the regime will break their necks."

The Popular Army was disbanded in 1991 when Uday established the Fedayeen Saddam, the guerrilla unit which did much of the fighting during the US offensive. Mr Ramadan became vice-president that year.

Totally devoted to the Baath Party, he survived disagreements with the president over economic policies in the 1980s and attempts on his life in 1997 and 1999.

Reputed to be a hawk who spoke his mind, Mr Ramadan described the 1991 Gulf War as a victory for Baghdad since it marked "the beginning of saying no to the forces of aggression".

In October 2002, he suggested that Saddam and Mr Bush should fight a duel with weapons of their choice in order to spare their countries the consequences of a destructive conflict.

Mr Ramadan, known for sarcastic comment rather than a sense of humour, proposed the UN Secretary General, Mr Kofi Annan, as referee. Washington dismissed the proposal.