MOSUL, Iraq – U.S. troops shot and killed a senior officer of the paramilitary group Saddam Fedayeen (search) after storming his house in this northern city on Wednesday, his neighbors said.
The U.S. Army confirmed there were raids early Wednesday in Mosul (search) but refused to comment on the reported death of Col. Ghanem Abdul-Ghani Sultan al-Zeidi.
Two of al-Zeidi's neighbors, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said U.S. troops stormed his one-story house in Mosul's central neighborhood of al-Sukar at about 4:00 a.m. and shooting was heard later. Helicopters took part in the operation, the neighbors said.
The gate of al-Zeidi's house was locked Wednesday afternoon. There were several bullet holes in the gate. A black banner nearby read: "The heroic martyr Colonel Ghanem Abdul-Ghani Sultan al-Zeidi was martyred during a blatant aggression by American forces at his house on 12/10/2003."
Capt. Brian Cope, a spokesman for the 2nd Brigade of the 101st Airborne Division (search), refused to comment on al-Zeidi's death.
Cope confirmed that the army carried out raids Wednesday against "35 separate targets" in Mosul. Cope, whose brigade controls Mosul, said dozens of people were captured in the raids including suspected members of Saddam Fedayeen and other former regime loyalists.
Hours after the raid, insurgents carried out two separate attacks in Mosul, killing two soldiers and wounding four.
Members of the Saddam Fedayeen, the paramilitary group that was run by Saddam Hussein's late son Uday, are believed to be taking part in attacks against U.S. occupation forces in Iraq.
Uday and his younger brother Qusay were killed by U.S. troops in Mosul in July.
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