Acting on a tip from an Iraqi informant, U.S. troops raided a house south of Tikrit on Thursday and captured five to 10 people believed to be members of Saddam Hussein's personal security detail. Maj. Gen. Ray Odierno, commander of the 4th Infantry Division, made the disclosure in a video-teleconference from Iraq with reporters at the Pentagon. Asked whether he believed U.S. forces were closing in on Saddam, Odierno said it was unclear whether the newly captured members of his security detail had been protecting him recently. Odierno said U.S. troops also have spoken with a wife of Saddam. He did not identify her. "We continue to tighten the noose," he said.
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