Report: Saddam In Baghdad Area

The U.S. military is holding Saddam Hussein in the Baghdad area, a member of the Iraqi Governing Council said Wednesday — showing videotapes of the atrocities with which he may be charged, a newspaper reports.

"He is still in greater Baghdad," said council member Mouwafak al-Rubaie. "Maybe he will stay there until he stands trial."

Al-Rubaie spoke at a news conference where council members issued a statement asking for Iraqis to seek reconciliation following the weekend capture of Saddam.

U.S. officials have confirmed that the former dictator was at an undisclosed location in Iraq.

According to USA Today, Saddam is being shown videotapes of Iraqis demonstrating against him, mass graves, torture sessions and executions in order to trick him into revealing information. Interrogators are also closely watching his reactions as a guide to his responses to questions.

CBS News Correspondent Jim Stewart reports Hussein is being treated well, but subjected to sleep deprivation.

Meanwhile, the Central Intelligence Agency is taking the lead role in the interrogation of the deposed Iraqi strongman.

CIA chief George Tenet will decide who will interrogate Saddam and what information they will seek, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said at a Pentagon news conference. It is not clear if Iraqis will be allowed to participate.

Intelligence and weapons experts doubt that the interrogation of Saddam will yield much useful information about guerrilla fighters or Iraq's alleged illegal arsenal.

So far, Saddam has denied to his interrogators that his regime had weapons of mass destruction and ties to al Qaeda, U.S. officials said. He has also denied knowledge of the fate of Scott Speicher, the Navy fighter pilot who disappeared over Iraq during the first Gulf War.

He has greeted his initial interrogation with a mix of sarcasm and defiance, the officials said, discussing the questioning only on the condition of anonymity. Some of his responses are regarded as an attempt to rationalize and justify his actions, the officials said.

Saddam has complied with simple commands to stand up and sit down, but officials said he has not provided much useful information on the guerrilla war or other matters.

Rumsfeld would not say whether Saddam had offered any information of value.

"Characterizing his general relationship with his captors, probably the best word would be resigned," Rumsfeld said.

Former CIA director James Woolsey was not optimistic that the deposed leader would become more forthcoming.

"I think we'll be lucky to get anything useful out of him," Woolsey told the CBS News Early Show on Tuesday. "But even liars sometimes can point you in a useful direction by what they lie about and the way they lie, so we may learn some useful thing."

Former chief U.N. weapons inspector Rolf Ekeus told CBS Radio that he doubts Saddam is going to tell his interrogators much about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, because there probably were not any significant stockpiles, and because Saddam did not care to know operational details.

U.S. intelligence and military officials say their first priority is to focus on the resistance and the whereabouts of Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri and other remaining senior regime officials and insurgent leaders.

The Washington Post reports a document found with Saddam when he was arrested has clues to the workings of up to 14 insurgent cells, and has led to the arrest of three generals.

The Post reports the document seems to indicate Saddam was an inspiration to the insurgency, rather than an operational commander.

President Bush said Saddam deserved the "ultimate penalty" but it would be up to the people of Iraq to decide whether he should be executed. In an interview with ABC News, the president also said Iraqis are "capable of conducting the trial themselves."

The United Nations, the Vatican and many countries worldwide — especially in Europe — oppose putting Saddam on trial before any court that could sentence him to death.