Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

DATE=9/29/2003

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=IRAQ (L)

NUMBER=2-308025

BYLINE=MICHAEL DRUDGE

DATELINE=BAGHDAD

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

INTRO: About a dozen Iraqi suspects have been arrested in the largest joint raid between Iraqi police and U-S troops around the troubled northern town of Tikrit. In other action, a U-S soldier was killed and another wounded in an attack near Fallujah and a member of the panel writing Iraq's constitution escaped a possible assassination attempt. V-O-A's Michael Drudge reports from Baghdad.

TEXT: About 200 Iraqi policemen joined nearly 100 American troops in the joint operation against suspected gunmen linked to deadly attacks against coalition forces and Iraqi security men.

American military spokesmen say the suspects were caught in Tikrit and a nearby village that is the home town of Saddam Hussein.

At a Baghdad news conference, a coalition military spokesman, Army Lieutenant Colonel George Krivo, praised the operation.

/// KRIVO ACT ///

It was a very significant set of raids on actionable intelligence provided by Iraqis. It was precise, we went in and found what we wanted to find. Very effective, very well done.

/// END ACT ///

In other action, Colonel Krivo says an American convoy was hit by a homemade bomb in the western town of Habaniya, near the flashpoint city of Fallujah. He said there were two American casualties and the fighting afterward continued for some time.

Meanwhile, officials of Iraq's governing council say a member of the panel writing a new constitution, Jalal al-Din al-Sagheer, survived uninjured from an apparent assassination attempt late Sunday in Baghdad . They say one of his bodyguards was killed.

A coalition spokesman says the incident is under investigation to determine if Mr. Al-Sagheer was the intended victim, or if his car was caught in crossfire from a criminal incident going on at the time. (SIGNED)

NEB/MWD/MAR/RAE