The serviceman described the awe he felt when his fellow soldier helped him hoist Hussein out, remarking, 'it was 'like, 'Holy cow, it’s him.'' Holland added how one of the larger soldiers helped him pull Hussein out of the eight-foot-deep hole. 'We grab him and jerk him out, and it’s like, 'that's him,' Holland told both Carr and Winkler, who appeared in awe of the soldier's impromptu story. Holland - - a 20 year vet who left the SEALS in 1999 only to join the army after the attacks on the World Trade Center - said the gun is now in the possession of President George W. The farm was set in a deserted expanse lined with only one road, Holland said, where Iraqis loyal to Hussein would station themselves to notify them of any approaching forces.Īfter being well received, Carr started the sensitive exchange by asking how Holland and his team came to spot the small hole, which was masked with brush and dirt and a large layer of Styrofoam underneath. Holland responded by describing in painstaking detail how they received 'human intel' regarding the then deposed dictator's location, and eventually found a haggard Hussein in a small hideout near a farm. 'I don’t know if we can talk about it or not – we’ll edit it out,’ Carr said, before asking the serviceman about the 2003 mission in the small agricultural town of Ad-Dawr, where Hussein was holed up. The conversation then turned to Hussein, with Carr approaching the subject somewhat carefully, seemingly anticipating that Holland would - and likely could - not elaborate.

The only known soldier to serve in both the Navy's elite SEAL Team 6 and the Army equivalent Delta Force, Holland - seen at left - described how soldiers posed for pictures with the deposed dictator, who said exuded an 'evil presence' Holland - a 20 year vet who left the SEALS in 1999 only to join the Army after the attacks on the World Trade Center - said that at a point, after restraining the prisoner, they told him, 'President Bush sends his regards.' Speaking surprisingly candidly to his fellow serviceman when questioned about the high profile incident, Holland revealed how he and his brothers-in-arms came to find the eight-foot hole, and how they found a haggard Hussein armed with a gun inside. The only known soldier to serve in both the Navy's elite SEAL Team 6 and the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta, Holland then offered never-before heard details to former Navy SEAL Jack Carr on his program Danger Close. A former member of the Army's secretive Delta Force - which pulled Saddam Hussein out of his underground hideout in 2003 - has finally provided a firsthand account of the dictator's capture.Īppearing on a podcast last month, retired Army Master Sergeant Kevin Holland spoke about Hussein's Decemarrest - the first time an American has done so in nearly 20 years.

Saddam hussein capture soldiers