VIDEO - US Army Maj. Gen. Bill Caldwell was quoted by CNN as saying that US Air Force F-16s launched an air strike Wednesday on an isolated safe house north of Baquba after coalition forces determined that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was inside.
"We had absolutely no doubt whatsoever that Zarqawi was in the house. It was 100 percent confirmation," he said.
CNN said Iraqi police were the first forces on the scene, followed by troops from the US Army's 4th Infantry Division, he said. Al-Zarqawi was dead when they arrived.
Al-Zarqawi's home after attack (Photo: AP)
Caldwell said that five other people were killed in the strike, including al-Zarqawi's key lieutenant and spiritual adviser Sheik Abd-al-Rahman.
Baquba is a volatile area northeast of Baghdad in Diyala province, a mixed Shiite-Sunni jurisdiction, the report said.
Pentagon sources told CNN that US Special Forces had tracked al-Zarqawi by following al-Rahman.
President George W. Bush also praised the Special Operations forces for their role in the mission.
Gen. William Casey, the top US military leader in Iraq, was quoted by CNN as saying that "tips and intelligence from Iraqi senior leaders from his network led coalition forces to al-Zarqawi.”
Iraqi civilians in and around Baquba also provided tips, authorities said.
Caldwell said the operation had been going on for weeks.
Attack on al-Zarqawi's home as seen from F-16 (Photo: Reuters)
"It truly was a very long, painstaking, deliberate exploitation of intelligence, information-gathering, human sources, electronic, signal intelligence that was done over a period of time -- many, many weeks - that led us last night to that target," he was quoted by CNN as saying..
Caldwell said they had been focusing on al-Rahman for about a month-and-a-half.
Once they confirmed al-Zarqawi's death, coalition forces launched 17 simultaneous raids in and around Baghdad, the report said.
'Significant victory in battle against terrorism'
Caldwell said the coalition identified the targets during the search, but did not raid them sooner because they were focused on al-Zarqawi.
"In those 17 raids last night, a tremendous amount of information and intelligence was collected and is presently being exploited and utilized for further use," he said. "I mean, it was a treasure trove; no question."
CNN said Al-Zarqawi's network was blamed for beheadings and attacks, including the 2003 suicide bombing of UN headquarters in Baghdad that killed Sergio Vieira de Mello, the UN envoy to Iraq, and 21 other people.
Another dramatic attack occurred in November, when a triple suicide bombing against hotels in Amman, Jordan, killed 60 people.
US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said the killing of al-Zarqawi was a significant victory in the battle against terrorism but not the end of the violence in Iraq.
"The fact that he is dead is a significant victory in the battle against terrorism in that country and worldwide," Rumsfeld said at a news conference.
AFP contributed to the report