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``There was a major action against a highly suspicious objective last night in Kirkuk and it is very possible that Izzat Ibrahim has been captured or killed,'' Reuters cited the council member, Mowaffaq al-Rubaie, as saying in the capital, Baghdad. Al- Rubaie said he had been in contact with the U.S. military.

The U.S.-led coalition last month offered a $10 million reward for information leading to al-Duri's capture. Al-Duri is ``directly implicated'' in some attacks on coalition forces, and the U.S. seeks his capture or death, Brigadier General Mark Kimmett said in announcing the reward. Al-Duri is the highest- ranking fugitive from the regime after No. 1-ranked Hussein.

There was no immediate information on al-Duri's fate as a result of the search, a U.S. military spokesman in Kirkuk said in a telephone interview. The hunt was led by the 173rd Airborne Brigade, using Black Hawk helicopters, with support from the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps and police, another spokesman said. (rooters) Last week, U.S. troops arrested a wife and a daughter of al-Douri in an apparent attempt to pressure him into surrendering.

In Baghdad, workers on Tuesday began dismantling four giant bronze busts of Saddam Hussein that have long been a Baghdad landmark.

The workers used a construction crane to take down the busts in the Republican Palace, in yet another move aimed at eradicating the former leader's influence. The U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority announced last month that it would dismantle the 13-feet-high busts. It was not clear how long the operation would last.

we've got to be a little careful with this story. remember that geraldo (please, no flames, it was a good story) reported a couple of weeks ago that we were negotiating with this guy, he wanted medical care and safe passage for his family, to surrender and thus stop organizing the attacks. this "he's dead" thing might be the cover story being used to mask his surrender, sort of like getting him into the witness protection program. the true test will be whether the rate of attacks starts dropping.