Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was captured alive by the US and Kurd forces in his hometown of Tirkrit, US administrator for Iraq Paul Bremer told a press conference in Baghdad.

The US military in Iraq said that the initial DNA tests had been done early Sunday morning, which indicated that the captured man was Saddam Hussein. "The DNA test confirmed 100 percent Saddam Hussein's identity", they said.

US administrator for Iraq Paul Bremer said that former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was captured Saturday at 8:30 pm local time (17:30 GMT) in a cellar in the town of Adwar, 15 kilometers from his hometown Tikrit.

Wearing a fake beard and burying himself in a cellar to hide from US troops, 66-year-old Saddam Hussein was captured alive in a US raid, called "Operation Red Dawn".

The American soldiers used shovels to dig him out. They photographed him, shaved the beard and photographed him again before running DNA tests.

US Lt. Gen. Richardo Sanchez said at the news conference that forces from the 4th Infantry Division along with Special Forces captured Saddam. There were shots fired or injuries in the raid.

The official said the captured man's appearance did not immediately look like Saddam, but additional efforts to ascertain his identity indicated he was the former leader.

The military raids in and around Tikrit were based on fresh intelligence and were aimed at capturing Saddam, and the man thought to be the former Iraqi president was captured in one of the targeted buildings.

The arrest was an enormous victory for the US-led coalition that has been battling an insurgency since the fall of Baghdad eight months ago.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair has welcomed Saddam's capture. He said in a statement released by his office that this is very good news for the people of Iraq.

Abdel Aziz al-Hakim, head of Iraq's interim Governing Council (IGC), who is visiting Madrid, also confirmed the news at a press conference in Madrid.

"I have the pleasure to announce on behalf of the Iraqi people that Saddam Hussein has been detained," he added.

Celebratory gunfire erupted in Baghdad and other cities in Iraq. Radio stations played celebratory music and people drove through the streets of the capital, shouting, "They got Saddam! They got Saddam!"

(Xinhua and CRI December 14, 2003)