Dori spotted near Diala – source

DIALA / IraqiNews.com: There is evidence Ezzat al-Dori, man no. 2 in the former regime of Saddam Hussein, is in a stronghold of the so-called Islamic State of Iraq group, an official intelligence source in Diala said on Sunday. “Very accurate intelligence confirmed that Dori is present in the areas stretching from the Hamrin hills in the district of Khanaqin, (155 km) northeast of Baaquba, and al-Adhim area, in al-Khalis district, (15 km) north of Baaquba, considered to be one of the key strongholds of the armed group Islamic State of Iraq,” the source told IraqiNews.com news agency. “The Iraqi forces have already intensified efforts in these areas in an attempt to capture Dori,” the source said. Born in 1942, Dori used to be the vice chairman of the Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council during the former regime’s time. He ranks 6th on a U.S. forces’ pack of cards of 55 most wanted persons after their invasion of Baghdad in April 2003, pledging a reward of $10 million for information leading to capturing the former Iraqi official. He had been reportedly arrested more than once, the recent of which was in April 2008. The dissolved Baath Party had announced on November 11, 2005 that Dori has died, only to deny the reports shortly after. Dori, according to web sites speaking in the name of Baath, is now the current leader of the party that split into two wings after 2003: one of them is led by Dori and the other by Mohammed Younus al-Ahmed, a member of the so-called regional command of Saddam’s Baath Party. He is on top of the Iraqi government’s July 2, 2006 list of most wanted persons, followed by Ahmed. Baaquba, the capital city of Diala province, lies 57 km northeast of Baghdad. AmR (S) 1