A former Delta Force operator has revealed the brutal details about Saddam Hussein’s capture.
Retired Army Master General Sergeant Kevin Holland was surprisingly open about the events surrounding Hussein’s arrest, which happened on 13 December 2003.
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Holland had a 20-year military career and he left the SEALS in 1999 and joined the Army following the 9/11 attacks.
Nearly two decades after the secret mission, Hollander said his Delta Force team told the former Iraqi president that ‘President Bush sends his regards’ when they pulled him out of the hole he’d been using as a hiding place.
Speaking on the an episode of the Jack Carr podcast, Hollander revealed his team received ‘human intel’ that led them to the eight-foot hole in the ground located in a small agricultural town in Iraq where Hussein was armed with a Glock 18 gun.
The hole was covered with a layer of leaves and sand and was plugged with Styrofoam to disguise its location.
The highly honoured veteran described a small pipe sticking up to allow air to flow. Along with his squadron, Holland uncovered and unplugged the hole before throwing a grenade into it.
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The inside of the hole was lined with bricks, like someone was hiding in it and after throwing a grenade inside, they heard a voice speaking Arabic which eventually became louder.
Holland said: “Then hands came out of the hole and a big bushy head of hair and then we grab him and jerk him out and it [was] like, ‘Well, that’s him’.”
The moment was surreal and the Holland and his squad members were in shock. He recalled hearing one of his squad members react with, ‘Holy cow, it’s him’ after literally uncovering the former Iraqi president’s hiding place.
Because Hussein was armed, another Delta Force member 'nails him in the mouth’. The unnamed ‘big Texan’ did so to get the gun out of his possession.
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Now the gun is in the possession of former president, George W. Bush, according to Holland.
The deposed president then tried to negotiate with the American team who uncovered his whereabouts, by confirming his identity in English.
“He just said he was the president of Iraq and he’s ready to negotiate,” Holland recalled. “He said that in English.
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“We’re like, ‘That time’s passed, brother.'”
He also described Hussein’s presence. “You could feel he was just an evil guy. He had this presence about him that was very unnerving,” Holland said.
Hussein was the fifth president of Iraq from 1979 until 2003.
His rule was marked with numerous human rights abuse allegations including an estimated 250,000 murders.
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Following his capture, he was put on trial and convicted of crimes against humanity in November 2006. He was sentenced to death by hanging and executed on 30 December 2006.