Squealer's brother killed

2004-06-05 14:34

Mosul - A brother of the man who led US forces to Saddam Hussein's feared sons, leading to their deaths in a gunbattle last July, was shot dead early on Saturday, said the police chief of Iraq's main northern city of Mosul.

"Salah al-Zaidan was killed when unknown gunmen fired on his car," Khoder Abdel Chamedinn said.

"Two of his relatives and a friend, who were also in the vehicle, were wounded" he added. The gunmen sped off from the scene of the attack in a car.

Uday and Qusay Hussein were killed in a blistering battle with US troops in Mosul on July 22 last year.

At the time, neighbours said Nawaf al-Zaidan, the tribal chief who owned the mansion where Uday and Qusay died, was in US protective custody.

US Secretary of State Colin Powell approved the payout of a $30m reward to one Iraqi who provided the tip-off that led to the brothers' deaths.

- AFP