Former Saddam Official Captured in Raid

BAGHDAD, Iraq — An Arab satellite news channel reported that a man suspected of being a former official in the Saddam Hussein regime who tops Iraq's most-wanted list, Izzat Ibrahim Douri, was captured yesterday by Iraqi soldiers in the northern part of the country.

The Al-Arabiya channel said the suspect was caught during a raid in the Hamrin Mountains.

The U.S. military said it had no information on the raid. Iraq's national security adviser, Mowaffak Rubaie, said he could not confirm that Mr. Douri had been captured. He told Al-Arabiya that the suspect had been brought to Baghdad for DNA testing. An Iraqi army official said the arrest took place in the early evening and the detainee bore a resemblance to the red-haired Mr. Douri, who had a reputation for ruthlessness and earned the sobriquet "The Iceman" for his early years selling ice on the streets of Baghdad.

Mr. Douri, who served as Saddam's vice president and deputy chairman of the Baath party's Revolutionary Command Council, is believed to head an armed wing of the party in Iraq.